


Kamen Rider Year

by deleydutton



Category: Kamen Rider
Genre: Amnesia, Bugs & Insects, Female Kamen Riders, Happy Ending, Mild Language, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-25
Updated: 2018-07-21
Packaged: 2018-08-10 23:30:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 48
Words: 257,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7865704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deleydutton/pseuds/deleydutton
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Meiki is a radio host with her best friend in a town where nothing seems to happen. Until a mysterious motorcyclist appears claiming that he will protect them from monsters that steal memories. When he's knocked out by a ReMare before transforming, can Meiki step up and become Kamen Rider Year? HECK YES SHE CAN.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A New Year

“Good morning, Oara! We’re your hosts, Kimura Mei…” That’s me. Don’t let my peppy voice fool you, I’m a radio show host in the most boring city in the world. You know what we’re “famous” for? Me neither, and it’s my job to know stuff like that.

“And Koda Mei! Welcome to FM 98.4 Mei Brigade!” That adorable chipper voice is my best friend. I call her Meiko. We were in the same class every year since first grade, and we’ve also always been neighbors. People just kind of decided that we were a set pair. Which is fine, but we’re actually very different! Meiko might be less outgoing than I am, but she’s super sweet and smart. I’ve got no shame saying she’s the brains of the operation. She has a beautiful singing voice, and she has the cutest pixie cut! She’s got a sort of style that would fit right in in some sophisticated French restaurant.

Oh! Sorry. I could go on and on about her, but we wouldn’t get anywhere! Putting it simply, Meiko is the best! I’ll fight anyone who says otherwise.

“It’s the first day of April and we’re live at Oara Community Center Park for the unveiling of a new mascot! More on that later!” I said, and turned the mic over to Meiko. I’d seen the mascot already. It was supposedly a smokestack from a factory. It looked… well, more odd than cute, but if it worked and brought attention to this slow city, I was already a fan.

I glanced around the park as Meiko said her bit. There was a small stage and a couple of stalls. A few people were setting up to make takoyaki and okonomiyaki. Our radio station van and our table was set up near the stage. It was shaping up to be a cute little festival, but I was really hoping that more people would show up. Kids were still out of school for spring break, so it’s not like they had anything else better to do.

“First, let’s get to the weather. It looks like it’s going to be sunny all day for the whole listening area. Go outside and enjoy the weather while the cherry trees are still blooming!” Meiko continued, adorably, because she’s the best.

“We should have a hanami picnic!” I added. Too bad the only park with more than one cherry tree in this town was down by the river, which stank. The community center park had gone with the controversial decision to only plant ume trees, which had already shed their blooms weeks ago. Still, it could be a good excuse to get out of town for the day. I couldn't even think of the last time I had been out. Something always came up.

“I’m not sure we’ll make it. Today might be the best day for a hanami. Tomorrow is shaping up to be windy, with thunderstorms rolling in in the morning. I hope the blossoms will hold up…” Meiko said, sounding wistful. The chance that we’d get time off to really enjoy the spring weather was pretty low.

Well, I couldn’t just let her be sad. I flashed her a smile and agreed. “Me too, Meiko. At least Puffy-kun's debut is outside at the Community Center! If you’ve got time, everyone, you should stop on by. It’s an important moment in Oara city’s history. Now… Hey! It’s time for our Music Morning Driiiiiiive!” I said. Meiko switched the mixer to the playlist we had set up for the morning, and turned off our mics.

“You’re really excited about this, aren’t you?” Meiko asked, removing her headset.

“Of course! There’s only so many times we can report the traffic and weather before it gets old,” I said, lowering my headset so I could hear her, but still keep tabs on the music playing.

“I don’t know. It’s kind of relaxing. And besides when something does happen, you still get bored really fast,” she said, adjusting some equipment.  

“Slander! Name one time something happened!” I demanded. There was no way I’d get bored if something different was going on. It was impossible.

“What about…” And here she paused, and I almost felt vindicated, except a complicated expression of confusion and concern crossed her face.

“Can’t think of anything, can you?” I said, teasing her anyway, although more gently than what I had originally planned.

“I don’t know. I just know that you do, okay?” She puffed out her cheeks and wrinkled her nose at me.

“Nah, nah. I’d never!” I waved a hand in dismissal. “Anyway, we’ve got a few minutes. Want to look at the stalls? Maybe get some breakfast? I don’t want to just sit here.”

“Okay, but I’m pretty sure you’re doing it now,” Meiko smiled at me.

I ignored her and put my headset down and stood up. I caught my reflection in the van’s window. I unbuttoned my orange vest so that more of the bright pink radio company shirt showed. No. That looked silly. I redid two of the vest’s buttons. There. “Alright! Takoyaki!” I said, pointing dramatically towards the booths.

“Oh, so you’re done making yourself handsome?” Meiko asked as she tapped her foot at me, an eyebrow raised. I know handsome isn't usually used for women, but I guess I have sort of an athletic charm. Meiko had told me once in high school that half the girls had crushes on me, but I think she was joking? I certainly never noticed.

I glanced back at the reflective window again, making sure I looked alright. I brushed aside the lock of hair that always fell out of my loose French braid club. “I don’t know, what do you think?” Okay, so I’m a little vain. Shut up.

“You’re fine, come on. We’ve only got a few minutes. ” she said, and dragged me off by my arm. We stopped at a takoyaki stand. The cook was an older man with stubble and a green apron.

“Hey! Can we get a set of six takoyaki?” I asked, handing over a few one hundred yen coins.

“Sure! Hey, lucky me, the first customers of the day are none other than the Mei Brigade,” he said, flipping over takoyaki quickly before putting them in a cardboard carton and covering them with sauce and fish flakes.

“Living in color!” I said, crossing my wrists below my chin and holding up two victory signs over my cheeks. People love it when they can get me to say my sign off catch phrase. The pose is just something I think is cool. I’m pretty sure Meiko rolls her eyes at me every time I do it though.

“Ha! That’s great,” he added a couple of extra takoyaki with a wink. “Koda-san, are you going to be singing today?”

“Oh… No, I don’t think so…” Meiko laughed and waved her hand in protest.

“You could, Meiko! I bet they’d let you, if we talked to the organizer,” I said, bouncing on my heels like a dumb puppy. If anything could make the day a little more exciting, it would be Meiko singing on stage. Maybe something cute, with the weird mascot dancing along?

“I’m sure they would…” she said.

“I’ll call ‘er over. Hey! Katsumi-san!” The old man waved over a frazzled looking business woman with short black hair.

“Yes?” She came over, flipping through papers on a clipboard, not really looking up.

“Do you got space to squeeze in a singer? Koda-san here wants to get on stage,” the old man said.

That made her look up. “Oh! Yes! We just had a cancellation. The idol group from Tenjin apparently forgot why they came here and went home early,” Katsumi said, gripping her pen like she would very much like to snap it in half. “Thank you so much, Koda-san! I was ready to start pulling out my hair!”

“Ah, don’t thank me,” Meiko said. “Meiki, we need to get back to the van.”

“Oh, right!” I said, taking the box of takoyaki from the man. It now had twelve takoyaki in it instead of six. Score! Food is the best, especially when it’s free.

Just then a guy on a black motorcycle drove right into the center of the festival, which was starting to attract some people. He got off the bike and took off his helmet. He wore a fitted leather jacket that had sakura blossoms embroidered on the back, and wore hakama over jeans. It was kind of a biker samurai look. It was odd seeing hakama worn over something other than a kimono, but the loose trousers suited him. His black hair was shaved short on the sides of his head, and he had dyed the remaining mess of hair bright pink.

“Eh, cool!” I said. My personal style was more vests and tee shirts in increasingly loud colors, with lots of colorful bracelets, but his style was so unusual. I liked it.

Meiko made a disapproving noise. Of course she did.

“Agh! Him again! I’ll come over in a minute to give you a schedule. Let me know if you need anything.” Katsumi said, and ran off to berate the motorcycle guy.

Meiko reached up, grabbed my ear, and dragged me back to the radio van. I protested, trying to keep up without spilling the takoyaki.

“Ow! What was that for?” I asked, rubbing my ear when she finally released me.

“I don’t want to sing!” She hissed at me.

“Why didn’t you say so?” I said as I stared at her, genuinely confused.

“I did! I said I wasn’t singing but you got all excited about the idea, you big dumb oaf!” She shoved me. Not hard. She was annoyed, but she didn’t actually want to hurt me.

“Oh. I’m sorry.” Have I mentioned I’m kind of an idiot? I’m a huge idiot. I’m sorry. “I’ll tell her you can’t do it.” I waved at Katsumi-san who was deep in argument with the biker.

Meiko humphed and put on her headset, her tone immediately changing to her bubbly radio voice. She talked about the festival briefly, before putting more music on.

Katsumi came over, the biker guy trailing behind. He seemed to have a small whiteboard, about the size of a smartphone, and a marker that didn’t seem to have any indication of a color. Even the cap was white.

“What do you need, Mei Brigade? I’m a little busy,” Katsumi asked.

“Um, Sorry, but I was talking to Meiko and…” I started.

“Mom! Just listen! You’ve introduced that stupid smokestack every week last month! The ReMares are just going to show up again,” the motorcyclist interrupted, sounding exasperated.

Katsumi rounded on him, her face red and her eyebrows furrowed. “For the last time, I’m not your mother! There’s no such thing as ReMares or whatever you called them, and when you tried to show me your stupid toy this morning, that ‘belt’ of yours nearly exploded.”

“I fixed it, I fixed it. It’s fine. I’ll show you,” He held up the whiteboard, and said “Henshin!” He uncapped the marker and started to bring the whiteboard down, about to cross the white marker over it, but Katsumi grabbed both and yanked them out of his hands.

“No! I’ll not have some weirdo blowing himself up at my festival!” She threw it on the ground and kicked the white board. It skittered under the van. The marker ended up under our table. I reflexively knelt to pick it up.

“AGH!” The young man threw up his hands, “Fine! Forget again! See if I care!” He stormed off back to his bike.

“The nerve of some people. Anyway, girls, what was it you needed?” Katsumi said, fixing her hair and smoothing down her shirt.

“Well, Meiko said that…” I glanced over at her.

“Is it alright if I sing from over here? I like using my own equipment.” Meiko interrupted me.

“Oh. Yes. Whatever you want to do. Thank you so much again, you are such a lifesaver. I’m going to go make sure our mascot is ready.” It sounded like that she also meant get a drink of either caffeinated or alcoholic nature, just by the stress in her voice. She waved a hand and wandered off to an official looking tent.

“Are you sure?” I asked when she was far enough away.

“Yeah. She’ll have a heart attack if I back out now.” Meiko sighed.

“I’m sorry. I dragged you into this.” I said, putting the cap back on the weird colorless marker just to have something to do with my hands.

“Yeah, you owe me one,” she shoved my shoulder, this time in a more friendly way.

“That’s fine with me,” I said, grinning like an idiot. “That guy sure was a nut job, huh?” I held up the marker to show her.

She glanced at it, and then over at him. “He sounded really upset. I hope he’s alright.”

“Yeah, I guess. Let me see if I can reach that belt or whatever he said it was. Give his stuff back.” I knelt next to the van. It was too far to just grab it, so I laid down on the ground and stretched. I was able to knock it back out from under the van. I picked it up and dusted myself off. “Can you handle the booth for a minute?”

“Sure. We’ve got a few minutes of commercials and then some music coming up. And Meiki?” She glanced up at me.

“Hm?”

“Be careful, alright?”

“Yes, yes, don’t worry!” I waved and jogged over to the motorcyclist. He was holding himself up with the motorcycle, muttering to himself. “Hey, you um… dropped this.”

“What?” he snapped and spun around. He relaxed when he saw the belt. “Oh. Thanks. Sorry you had to see that.” He took his things back.

“Are you… alright?” I asked.

“Are you crazy, you mean?” he said and laughed bitterly.

“Ah, no, I didn’t mean that!” I said, although I kind of totally did.

“It’s fine. People just don’t remember ReMares. Unfortunately.” He glanced in the direction that Katsumi had stormed off in.

“That does seem very inconvenient.” I agreed, just to be polite. I was already edging away.

“You’ve seen them too. You’ve been here every week for the past month for this damn festival.” he said, and then paused. “You’re not half bad at fighting them, but it’s hard to do any damage to them as a normal person.” He stared at me expectantly, as if I was supposed to do something with that information.

Information that was plainly crazy. I think I’d remember if I got in a fight. “Sorry, I’ve got to get back to the van,” I said, and started retreating in earnest.

Just then, patches of inky black ooze bubbled up from the ground, all over the park.

“Here they come. Get ready!” he said, holding up the belt.

The piles of ooze rose up and became monsters. They were vaguely human shaped, but inky black, and looked… sticky. People screamed, and ran. A bigger one, this one still inky black but with a vaguely dog-like head and a droopy tail, appeared behind the motorcyclist.

“Look out!” I said. Several of the inky things were surrounding the booth where Meiko was sitting. She was valiantly fending them off with my folding chair, swinging it wildly. One of the inky things touched her, and suddenly changed. It had bright blue eyes now, and some odd blue markings over its body. “Meiko!” I shouted. She slowed and looked confused.

“Hen-“ the biker started to say. The dog monster flailed its arm out, knocking the young man in the head. He stumbled and dropped the whiteboard and marker. The monster grabbed him, and the biker seemed to faint. The monster gained pink markings, and its form solidified and pink armor appeared.

“Oh, Rou. Did you really think you could get away with taking things from the High ReMares? Poor foolish boy,” the monster said, his voice soft but rumbly, like distant thunder. “We’ll be taking the driver back now,” he crooned, kneeling down to stroke Rou’s cheek. The pink markings spread.

“W-what are you?” I demanded, slowly skirting around the monster. I had to do something.

“What am I? That’s a rude question, child. I am Anubis, servant to the High ReMares. But that doesn’t matter. You’ll forget again soon enough,” he said, grinning a doggy smile that might have been cute on a normal dog, but on this thing, it was terrifying.

I dove at the belt and marker, rolling and coming up at a crouch. “That’s what you think! That guy said this would defeat you!” That guy, who I had been certain was crazy just a few minutes ago. Oh well. If he was crazy, I was crazy, because this was a nightmare.

“Rou did? How cute,” Anubis laughed, and it sounded like boiling water. “I doubt it even works, after he’s put his grubby little paws all over it.”

What had he… Rou said? I stood up, holding the whiteboard part of the set up in the air. I popped the cap off of the colorless marker and said “Henshin!” I brought the whiteboard down and swiped the marker across its shiny surface. I put the white board part against my waist. Suddenly a white belt with a black stripe wrapped around me. Ah. So that was why he had called it a belt. A small round slot lit up on the side of the whiteboard buckle. The marker also lit up. “Does this go in here?” I put it in and bright white light appeared in front of me, swirling around me in big loopy circles, like someone was scribbling in 3D.

“This is your YEAR! Let’s go! Let’s go! Yeah!” The belt said with an energetic guitar riff. When the light faded, I was wearing some sort of weird white armor.

I looked down at myself, “Eh?! Eh?! What’s this?!” It was light and flexible like spandex, but it felt like it was stronger than that. It had black lines down the front and arms. I had a helmet covering my whole face. I could tell there was something on my back, so I twisted around. “Sweet! A cape!” I said. It was white with patterns that looked like dragonfly or butterfly wings.

“So it does work. I was so hoping he had tinkered with it too much. Oh well,” he said, shrugging. “If you want to be crushed like a bug, that’s fine.” He advanced, reaching out to grab me by the head.

“I don’t think so!” I grabbed his wrist and pushed his hand away, punching at the dog monster with my free hand.

He took a step back, looking stunned that I had dared punch him. He was definitely more offended than hurt, if he even was hurt at all. “Excuse me?”

“You’re excused! Bye!” I turned and ran over to Meiko. I kicked the blue monster away from her. She stumbled back, looking confused and terrified.

“Wha… who are you?” Meiko asked.

“It’s me, Meiki!” I said.

“Who?” She asked.

I felt a sharp pang of dread, but now the blue monster was fighting back, and I had to block its attacks. “Never mind! Hide in the van, Meiko!” I shouted. She nodded and climbed inside, shutting the door. “Alright, jerk, come at me!” I punched it squarely in the face and it gave a distressing squish and stumbled back. The thing’s entire face was mashed in, the blue lines on its face dripping down. It stumbled over to where a young kid was hiding in the bushes. The boy screamed, and the monster grabbed his arm. The monster’s face repaired itself and now there was red lines patterned in with the blue. The boy looked dazed, and sat down on the ground.

“That’s not…” I said, feeling crestfallen. Worse, Anubis seemed interested and was coming towards me.

“What a promising Blot.” Anubis patted the thing on the head affectionately. “Defeat this girl, and consume her memories. Evolve to your true form!” Anubis laughed. It lifted its armored hand in the air and howled. The other Blots that were milling around the park aimlessly gathered around the red and blue Blot. The two toned Blot absorbed the others, and grew bigger. Their head became shark like. “What’s your name, child?”

“SHARKY!” They barked out.

Anubis stumbled to the side and put a hand up to his face. “Sharky. Your name is Sharky.”

“YES! SHARKY!” The two toned shark monster nodded vigorously.

“Oookay. I’m done here. Sharky, destroy this…” Anubis gestured vaguely at me.

“Year.” I said, remembering what the belt had chimed as I had transformed. “I’m Year! Living in color!” I did my cool crossed arms pose to go with it.

Anubis rubbed the bridge of its dog nose as if it had a headache. “Alright. It’s fitting. Idiots, please destroy each other.” With that, Anubis collapsed into a pile of pink light and black ooze, absorbing back into the ground.

“YAY!” Sharky cheered, and charged at me.

“Oh shit!” I said, dodging out of the way. The shark ran past, spun around and attempted to punch me again. This time, I blocked with my arm. They grabbed that arm and promptly put it in their mouth. “HEY! I’m not food!” With my other arm, I struggled, punching the thing in the nose repeatedly. Turns out that trick to get out of a shark attack doesn’t work on oozy shark monsters. Who knew?

From my belt there was a ping and a cheery sounding guitar scale. “Prism Charge Complete!” It said.

“What now?” I grumbled. I was now using one of my knees to push at Sharky’s abdomen. I probably looked ridiculous. And what’s worse, my attacks were not doing much. Each blow just squelched grossly and then Sharky healed itself. I glanced down at the belt. The marker was glowing and flashing.

Acting on instinct, I pulled it out of the socket, and with a bright flash, it changed in my hand. The marker became bigger, although it was still a white cylinder shape. Now it looked more like the hilt of a sword. There was a button at the top. I pressed it, and a beam of white light shot out of one end, like a sword. “Prism Blade! Prism Blade! GO GO GO!” The belt cheered, music playing again.

Wasting no time, I slammed the blade into Sharky’s face. They squealed and staggered back, releasing my arm. I held the sword in front of me, ready to attack again.

Sharky clutched at their face for a moment, and then dropped their hands. Where the blade had touched their face there was a twisted bright white scar. “THAT HURT SHARKY!” They started crying and I relaxed my battle stance.

“I’m sorry. Maybe don’t bite folks?” I said, feeling kind of bad for the shark monster. I’m pretty weak against tears. Meiko has said that’s a good thing, that I have a good heart. Most people say I’m just dumb and naïve.

“DOGGY SAID DESTROY,” Sharky said sobbing in between words.

“Doggy’s not very nice is he? Let’s not do what doggy says, okay?” I said. Sharky looked warily at my sword. “Ah, is it too scary? Here.” I pressed the button and the light blade disappeared. I put it back on the belt. “All gone, okay?”

“BAD LIGHT GONE!” With a sudden roar they lunged at me, hands becoming wickedly sharp claws. I flinched, raising my arms up to protect myself.

There was a loud thunk. The claws stopped short of my body. I lowered my arms to see what had happened. Sharky had stumbled to the side, and a motorcycle helmet lay on the ground. I looked over at Rou. He had pulled himself up by his bike and somehow managed throw the heavy helmet. He looked like he was sweating hard, and shaking.

“Hey! Thanks!” I shouted, giving him a salute.

“Don’t drop your guard, idiot!” He shot back. “You’ve got to finish that thing off!”

“But they’re scared!” I said, gesturing at the shark monster, who was now roaring and shouting “BAD!” at the helmet while attempting to stomp it into the ground. “I can’t kill them!”

“And what are you going to do with them instead?” Rou demanded. “They’re not a pet. They eat memories. Are you going to starve them to death instead? Or let them eat your memories?”

“Meiko’s memories… And that boy’s…” I said to myself, thinking hard about what he said. I didn’t like it. Sharky didn’t seem that smart, and it seemed cruel to attack them when they seemed so upset about getting hurt.

“Don’t you want to protect them? Don’t you want to keep their precious memories safe?” Rou hurled the questions at me like weapons and they hit me hard. I had said something like that in third grade, with all the earnest passion in my tiny body. Someone had stolen some of our class photos off our bulletin board and I played hero, giving dramatic playground speeches until it had turned out that another teacher had taken them to make a surprise memento for our pregnant teacher. Some kids had made fun of me for getting so worked up about it, which was embarrassing, but in the end, the experience had become a precious memory itself.

Meiko might not remember it.

I didn’t like it, but Rou was right. I couldn’t just let this be. “Dammit,” I muttered, and rounded on Sharky, fists up and ready.

The only thing there was a busted up motorcycle helmet.

“Eh?! Where did they go?”

“They’re gone?” Rou looked around desperately before getting in my face. “This is because you hesitated!”

“Sorry…” I said, cringing back.

“You took my belt and you let the monster go!” Even though I was in the Year armor, his angry glare that close to my face was intimidating.

I glanced around, looking for an escape. I spotted his bike. “I’ll go look for it.”

He followed my gaze and then shook his head. “No. Not that too. You’re not taking my bike. They probably went back to Under to report to Anubis.”

“Under? Under where?” I asked, feeling kind of dumb.

“It’s just Under. It’s where they live.” He sighed and stepped away. He walked a circle around me, looking me up and down. “How was it?” He lifted my cape to inspect it.

“How was what?” I said, trying to look over my shoulder at him.

“The belt! The transformation! You’re stronger right? You’re not hurt? Have any dizziness? Nausea? Are you exhausted?” He grabbed the arm that Sharky had bitten and examined it. “Any loss of memory? That thing bit you, did it hurt?”

“I’m… Fine? No, I feel pretty great! I am a lot stronger. What is all this?” I said, catching a glimpse of myself in the car window. “Dang, I look cool.” The helmet was white as well, with black lines down the center and around the black, bug-like eyes. I had antennas too, that stuck out of the helmet and curled like a butterfly’s.

“Yes, of course. I designed it after all. It’s a highly advanced tool to fight the ReMares. You may transform back now.” Rou said, letting go of my arm and coming back in front of me.

“How?” I asked.

“Cap the Memoka and wipe the Time Driver off.”

“Time Driver?” I asked, “Memoka?

“The whiteboard,” he said as he pointed at it, “and the marker.”

“Um, okay.” I glanced around for the cap. I looked back at him and ducked my head, feeling a little foolish.

“Did you lose the cap?” he sighed.

“…Yes,” I said reluctantly. “I was in a hurry.”

“Here, I’ve got extras.” He reached in his jacket pocket and tossed me one.

“Thanks,” I said, and capped the marker. Next I held onto the whiteboard with one hand and swiped the other across the front.

“Erase. Bye Bye!” the belt did another guitar chord, this time going lower towards the end, powering down. The belt part disappeared and I was back in my regular clothes.

“Here. Sorry again,” I said, holding out the Time Driver and Memoka for him. I didn’t really want to give it back. The power and fighting those weird monsters was exhilarating. “That was pretty cool. Sorry I doubted you.”

Rou looked at it but made no motion to take it. He sighed. “Keep it. It's attuned to you now. It’ll only work for one person.”

He looked so disappointed, like I had just eaten his whole birthday cake and told him puppies weren’t real. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t know, I just wanted to help my friend.” That’s right! She was still in the van. “Meiko!” I said and ran to open the door. “Meiko, are you alright?”

Meiko was on the secondary mixer, busy at work. She glanced up at me. “What? Of course I am. What’s wrong?”

“The ReMares attacked you, and I was Year and I had a laser sword and it was so cool…” I slumped when I saw her confused expression. “Wait, maybe you don’t remember… Do you know who I am?”

“Of course I do. Are you alright, Kimura-san?” she said. “Do you want to help me get the primary mixer fixed so we can broadcast the mascot’s debut?”

“Kimura...” I repeated dazed. I don’t think she’d ever called me that. “Yeah, alright.” I said, and went back to the table. I shoved the Time Driver and the Memoka into my vest pocket. It looked like the small crowd that had scattered when the blots had shown up was returning. Katsumi was at the stage, setting up a microphone.

“She didn’t remember.” Rou said.

“No.” I knelt down to fuss with the cables. Some of them had come undone in the struggle.

“Does she know what’s going on today?”

“I think so. She’s getting ready for the mascot reveal,” I said.

“Good. If I had to repeat this day one more time…” He trailed off. “Are you alright?”

“Just… I don’t know.” I brushed my hand over my hair. “I should be happy. She remembered me, but…”

“What?”

“She called me by my last name.” I put my head in my hands, trying not to cry.

Unexpectedly, he put his hand on my shoulder. I looked up, surprised, and a little suspicious. “What, aren’t you going to say I told you so?” I asked.

“No.” He sighed. “You could have done worse.”

“Gee, thanks.” I said, but at least it seemed like he wasn’t as angry at me.

Meiko came out of the van, “Who is this guy?” She tilted her head at Rou. He quickly put his hands in his jacket pockets and looked away, in an attempt to look like he just happened to be there casually. Someone thought he was too cool for friendly feelings. Idiot.

“Oh. His name is Rou, I think,” I said, when he didn’t seem inclined to introduce himself.

At that, he looked alarmed. He pulled his hands out of his pockets. “Rou?” He asked. “Is that my name?”

I shrugged, “How am I supposed to know? That’s what that big guy called you.”

“Is that what he took? Annoying bastard,” he mumbled as he pulled out his wallet from his jeans pocket from under his hakama and opened it. “You’re right. I’m Meiji Rou.” He pulled out a business card and handed it to me. It was an average white card, but behind his name and information there was a pink sakura printed on it.

“Your name is written with the kanji for sakura?” I asked.

“Yeah?” He said, rolling his shoulders like he was ready to fight about it.

“That’s cool,” I said, and he relaxed.

“Okay…” Meiko said, sounding dubious. “Kimura-san is everything set up and ready to go?”

“Yep. Looks good to me,” I said, trying to sound cheerful, as I handed Rou one of my own business cards. It had a cute little cartoon version of me and Meiko that we used for our logo. He nodded and held it up, as if saying he’d get in contact, before going back to his bike. He left. I wished he hadn’t. He was the only one who knew what had happened. I was tempted again to insist that Meiko believe my story, but I didn’t want her to think I was crazy too.

From on stage, Katsumi started talking in a cheery announcer voice.

“Looks like she’s ready to introduce the mascot, I guess…” I looked away and sighed. After that fight it was not very exciting.

“Don’t sound so bored, Kimura-san. We’ve got a show to do,” Meiko said.

“Right.” I said, gathering my confidence. I’d find a way to get Meiko’s memory back. “I’m living in color!”

 


	2. Cycles

I woke up a minute before my alarm to the dull roar of rain. The gray darkness seemed to creep into the apartment, muting the bright colors of what Meiko called my magpie nest. I laid there until the alarm started buzzing. I slapped the snooze button and sat up. Next to the alarm was the small whiteboard and marker. Time Driver and Memoka. As I got dressed and re-braided my hair, they weighed heavily on my attention. Meiko didn’t know we were friends. Rou thought I was incompetent, and there was a loud shark monster out there somewhere waiting for me.

I slipped the Time Driver and Memoka into my pocket and went to make coffee and check the Internet for anything interesting to report at work. I was just looking at an article about the mascot that was introduced the day before, just to see if anyone had mentioned the whole weirdness with the ReMares and blots, when my cellphone chimed. I checked it, my heart sinking when I saw the time on the lock screen. I was running late. Very late. Usually Meiko knocked on my door as she was heading downstairs to go to the bus stop and we'd go together. I had already missed the bus and I only had fifteen minutes to get to work.

I checked the text anyway. It was from Rou. "Come by sometime today," it read, and included a location pin.

I texted him back a quick "k" before grabbing my work messenger bag and barreling down the stairs. The next bus would be another hour, and that would be well after my show had started. I’d have to brave the rain. I jumped on my bicycle instead, peddling furiously down the road. Let me tell you one thing about Oara. On one side is the ocean and the other side is a bunch of mountains. Flat Kansas it is not. I got to work soaked from the rain, exhausted and barely on time.

"Meiki, are you alright?" The receptionist asked. "You're soaked."

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Not dying, probably." I said, taking off my soggy outside shoes for my comfortable inside shoes. Even my socks were wet. Ugh. I took them off too. I had an extra outfit in my locker, it was just a matter of getting changed. “Just had to swim to work, that's all.”

"Meiko is already here. Did you guys get in a fight or something?" she asked, watching me as I awkwardly walked over to the lockers to grab my emergency set of extra clothes.

"No, um. I don't know," I said, distracted. That is probably what it looked like, wasn't it? "I'm going to change. I'll join her in the booth as soon as I'm finished. Let her know I'm here, could you Nawata-san?"

"Alright."

I quickly got changed in the bathroom, and went to our sound booth. I waited until she put a commercial up to join her. "Good morning!" I said cheerfully, "Sorry I'm late. Usually you knock on my door on the way out so I lost track of time."

"Good morning, Kimura-san," Meiko said quietly. "No, I don't think I do. I do not know where you live. Are you alright?"

"We live next...” She looked a little alarmed, and I dropped it. Maybe announcing that we lived next to each other when she didn't remember that was weird. “Whatever. I'm fine. Just fine." I said, although I was starting to doubt it. "Must have been thinking of someone else. Sorry."

"Alright. Let's start," Meiko switched us back to recording.

"Good morning Oara. It's your hosts, Kimura Mei," I said, trying to give my radio voice its normal high energy. I mostly just sounded tired.

Meiko looked at me, puzzled, before giving her own introduction. "And I'm Koda Mei!"

She didn't add the part about being the Mei Brigade, so I awkwardly added, "We're the FM 98.4 Mei Brigade, and um..."

"I've been thinking about that. Why are we called that?" Meiko asked.

"What? The Mei Brigade? We've always been called that," I said, floundering. "We're both named Mei and we're a team..." I glanced out the window to the hallway to see if the producer was watching. She was. Okuda-san had looked up in concern. I gave her a sort of pleading look and she made a gesture to change the subject. "Anyway! How's the weather today? It's really coming down out there. I had to ride my bike this morning and I got soaked!"

"Right. It's raining for most of our listening area. It'll keep raining all day. Tomorrow should be sunny and clear though, so it's a good day to go do something fun!"

"I heard there's a big sale down at the Kamitori Arcade tomorrow. Maybe we should go shopping?" I said, falling into our regular banter.

"I'm sure that is something our listeners should go do," she said, dodging the invite. "There's going to be a lot of lovely booths from local farmers and artisans. Please stop by! And with that, it's time for our Morning Music Drive," she said, putting on the morning playlist.

"What's going on?" Okuda-san asked as she came into the booth. "We've gotten a ton of calls from listeners asking if you guys are fighting and it's only been a few minutes!"

"Why would we be fighting?" Meiko asked, like it was beneath her notice to even talk to me, let alone care enough to quarrel with me.

"Ah, um... Sorry, boss! I'm actually not feeling very well today. It's my fault," I said, trying to keep Meiko from just outwardly admitting to the boss that she wasn't friends with me.

Okuda-san gave me a searching look, and sighed. "Alright. Explain that to the caller we give you and then go home. Get some rest, alright? We're looking for a Mei combi and this just isn't working today. Maybe you need to take a sabbatical..."

"Yes, ma'am." I said, feeling like I was sinking into the ground. I loved the radio station, and it didn't seem fair that I had to take a break. Well. It was better than getting into an actual fight with Meiko over memories that didn't match up and have her deny our friendship on air.

After our music break, we patched in the caller that Okuda-san had selected.

"Hello, caller. This is the Mei Brigade. What's up?" I asked, ignoring Meiko's puzzled frown.

"Hey, Mei Brigade! What's going on today? Are you guys alright?" The caller asked.

"I'm a little under the weather today. Slept in late and had to bike in the rain. So I'm actually going to be taking a little time off. Meiko will take care of you, so no worries!" I said, trying to sound cheerful.

"Oh no. Take care, Meiki. We love your show!" The caller said.

"Thank you so much. I will. And thanks for calling. I'm going to head home, so I'll hand you off to Meiko with some cool tunes." I took off my headset while Meiko introduced some more music.

I hesitated at the door to the booth. "Bye, then," I said.

She nodded, not looking up from the mixer. "Take care."

I waited a moment longer before sighing and leaving. I gathered up my things and grabbed an extra umbrella. My outside shoes were still damp. The receptionist gave me a concerned look, "You could just apologize. I know Meiko would forgive you right away.”

"We're not fighting!" I snapped and shut the door to the station a little harder than I had intended. Whoops. I walked out of the building and stood at the entrance for a long moment. Of course now the rain had let up. I didn't really want to go home just to mope around, so I hooked the umbrella handle to my bike and looked up the pin that Rou had sent me.

It looked like it was a little café called Momiji, in the Kamitori Arcade. I hopped on my bike and started pedaling. At the top of the hill before reaching Kamitori, I paused to catch my breath. A motorcycle zoomed past and I heard the rider shout "Nice ride!"

I scowled after them, and pushed off, gliding down the hill, letting the thrill of zooming down distract me from how annoying the day had started off.

At the bottom of the hill I took a sharp right, entering the arcade. It was oddly quiet now. Usually the place had a constant stream of people, with vendors in long aprons trying to hustle folk to their bars. Most of the businesses were shuttered still for the morning. It wasn't even eight, so the day hadn't really started yet. I parked my bike to the side of the street near the cafe. It was still shuttered.

"I'm here. It's locked up though," I texted Rou. I nodded politely at an employee at a nearby shop who was setting out a sign with the day's specials.

A door next to the cafe swung open, and Rou stuck his head out. "Up here. Come on."

"It's not the cafe?" I asked, following him up some narrow and distressingly steep stairs. This building was clearly not made recently, nor with comfort in mind. “I was kind of hoping to get something to eat,” I said.

"No. I hang out there sometimes, and the owner helps me with things occasionally. But my lab is here," he explained, putting his shoulder into another door that seemed to be slightly off its hinges.

"Oh." I said, not sure what to say about that. The inside was almost as run down. The floor was covered with an atrocious green carpet, and the walls were covered in bookshelves and filing cabinets. Over that layer of junk, he had propped up several large whiteboards, which were covered in notes and drawings of the Time Driver. A table covered with more notes and bits and pieces of white plastic and other tools took up prime real estate in the center of the room. Off to the side was a cramped kitchen and a large bay window with a surprisingly nice leather couch.

He stood there for a moment, as if suddenly realizing how disorganized the room looked, and started quickly straightening a pile of papers on the table.

"What did you need?" I asked, wondering if maybe he expected me to help him tidy.

"First of all, give me the Time Driver.” Confused, I hesitated. Why did he want it back now? He rolled his eyes. “I’m going to give it back. Just hand it over,” he held out a hand, his voice impatient. He had cleared a small area around what looked like a cell phone docking station that had a number of cords coming out of it.

“What are you doing?” I asked, handing it over. He placed the Time Driver in the docking station. He typed something in on a soft pink portable keyboard, the kind that could be rolled up or folded.

“I’m recording the battle data from yesterday and syncing it to the Pair Device,” he explained distractedly. More jargon. I sighed.

“So… Is that all you needed?” I asked, wandering around the room. He had a picture of himself in a school uniform with Katsumi-san putting him in an affectionate headlock. I picked it up. He looked so clean cut, with his school appropriate hair and normal clothes. At least today he had replaced the hakama with loose jeans that had a sort of metallic sheen to them.

He looked up. “No. We’re going to go find Sharky,” he said, pulling a map out of the mess and unfurling it on the table. “The longer you wait the worse it’s going to get.”

“What?” I straightened up and took a step forward. “Worse?”

He gave me a look like I was stupid. “They’re going to keep eating memories. And if they’re like the other new ReMares, they’ll go for other memories of you and Koda-san being friends first. ReMares tend to get a get a taste for certain memories. Now, you’re basically safe from them as long as you’re transformed, but if you’re the only one who remembers being friends with her…” He trailed off, giving me a significant look. I shuddered.

“So, what do we do?” I said, investigating the map of Oara. It was something the tourism board handed out to local companies, so it had cute cartoony markings on it where there were points of mild interest, like where to find restaurants, locally grown fruit or the local style of pottery. There was also something about a bell that claimed to be the biggest in Japan. I had never seen it, but I was pretty sure there was a town up north near Tokyo that claimed the same thing. “How is this supposed to help?”

Rou narrowed his eyes at me, his ears going red. “It’s the biggest map of Oara that I could find. And you’d be surprised how often these places are targeted,” Rou snapped and shoved a blue highlighter into my hand. “Look, I just need you to mark places that are important to your friendship, and where there would be a lot of people who know about it.”

“Alright,” I said, crouching down to mark places like our schools and the radio station. “But, I think the whole city knows about us. It’s kind of our whole radio thing. That’s why I’m here and not at work. Our fans think we’re fighting.”

“Then the radio station might be the best place to start,” Rou said, snatching the map away from me and investigating it carefully.

“I just came from there. Everything seemed fine,” I said, not really looking forward to biking back up that hill. Or explaining to my coworkers why I was back already.

“We’ll stop by the schools as well. What's this? Apartments?” He asked, pointing to a spot on the map that I had marked, but wasn’t labeled as a point of interest.

“Yeah, we both grew up there,” I said. “Listen, I’ve just got a mamachari bike, going to all those places is going to take all day.”

“I know, I saw you earlier. We’ll fix that,” he said, waving me off distractedly as he walked over to one of the white boards to affix the map to it with magnets.

“You’re the one that made fun of my bike!” I said, gasping like a child who had just decided to tattle on someone.

“Because it's silly. What kind of hero gets around on a bike with a basket?” He snorted, rolling his eyes. “Come on. Did you bring the Memoka too?”

I nodded and he grabbed the Time Driver and a second small whiteboard. “Is that another Time Driver?”

“No, unfortunately. It’s the Pair Device. It’s going on your garbage bike,” he said, smirking at me.

“Excuse me for having a garbage bike,” I grumbled as I followed him back down the stairs.

“Is that it?” He asked when we got down to street level. My bike was still the only one parked along the side of the arcade. Later there would be a long line of them. I nodded, and he handed me the Time Driver. “Take this. Let’s see…” He knelt next to my bicycle, clamped a cellphone mount to the center of the bars, and then secured the Pair Device to that. “There we go. Swipe the Memoka on this.” He tapped the Pair Device.

I took out the Memoka and uncapped it. I drew a swooping line across the Pair Device. The line glowed, and the Pair Device started playing a complicated drumbeat while white light circled around the bike, similar to my Time transformation. “SYNCHROCYCLE PAIR TIME!” the Pair Device declared in an oddly gravelly voice. The basket disappeared and the tires became thick and sturdy. White armor appeared on the bicycle until calling it a bicycle was no longer accurate. It was definitely a motorcycle now, with a sleek gleaming white frame and stylish black lines that mimicked the lines on my Year armor.

“Eeeeeh? No way!” I exclaimed, circling the bike, admiring it.

“You’re welcome,” Rou said. He was grinning and had his arms crossed in front of himself. “Now, let’s get going.” He undid a latch under the seat and pulled out a white helmet that, while looking more like a normal motorcycle helmet, still had some echoing style elements to Time’s helmet. He thrust it into my hands.

I turned it around in my hands. “Right. Um. This is really cool and all, but I’ve never driven a motorcycle in my life,” I said, my excitement slipping.

“The Pair Device is linked to the Time Driver and thus to you. It will adjust for any mistakes you might make. It also functions as a GPS, radio, and a communication link with me, among other things.” It was really annoying to see him look so smug, but I suppose he had just transformed a cheap old bike into a super motorcycle. He maybe had a right to it. “Get on. Try it out. I’ll meet you at the radio station.” He took off into an alleyway.

I put on the helmet and straddled the Synchrocycle. The Pair Device made a chirp and the Time Driver made an echoing one from my pocket. On the Pair Device, the words “Let’s Go!” appeared. I tapped it, and the engine rumbled alive. I lifted my feet and drove slowly down the arcade street. It handled so smoothly. As soon as I got back to the main road, I increased the speed, grinning and leaning in.

At the top of the hill, Rou caught up with me. “Nice bike!” he shouted again as he passed me by on his black motorcycle.

Okay, so this is a little embarrassing, even for me, but I may have whooped really loud and raced him all the way back to the radio station. We probably looked like jerks, weaving in and out through the morning traffic. It was close, but I ended up pulling into the parking lot first. “Nice bike, yourself!” I said as I took off my helmet and stored it.

He was also grinning like an idiot. “Not bad for someone who only knew how to use a garbage bike. Am I a genius or what?”

“Of course,” I agreed amiably. “So, do we just go in? I’m supposed to be at home, resting,” I peered up at the building. “They think Meiko and I are fighting.”

“I know. I was listening,” he said, getting out a small plastic box out of a saddle bag on the side of his motorcycle. “And I heard your show this morning. It was pretty awkward.”

“You listen to my show?” I said, surprised.

“You’d be surprised how often you’ve alerted me to ReMare activity,” he flashed me a grin, “And no, we don’t have to go in. We’re putting down a sensor. If a ReMare shows up, it’ll trigger an alarm on the Pair Device and Time Driver,” he explained. He opened the box and I peered over his shoulder to see what was inside. Origami paper? He handed me a piece of pink origami paper. “I’ll need you to write the kanji for sensor on it with the Memoka.” He noticed the look I was giving him and scowled, “What?”

“What good is origami paper going to do?” I asked dubiously.

“Is this really the weirdest part about this whole situation?Just do it!” He thrust the paper at me. “It's special paper that works with the Memoka. Don't worry about it.”

“Alright.” I did what he asked. The mark glowed white, and Rou took the paper back, inspecting it.

“Huh. I did not expect your handwriting to be so…”

“Cute?” I said, grinning.

“Girly. Whatever. It should work.” He said, quickly folding it into a little flower. “I’ll go stick it to the wall. Stay here.” He jogged away and slapped it to the brick. Somehow it stayed in place. He came back. “Let’s get going. Dai San Junior High is closest.”

We road to the junior high and repeated the process. After that we went to Oara High School. There was a surprising amount of people around. Adults in suits and kids in uniforms that seemed slightly big on them milled around, taking photos as families or with friends. “Huh. I didn’t realize the entrance ceremony was today,” I said, getting the Memoka out to mark another one of the origami papers. “Wouldn’t this attract ReMares?” I asked, “Maybe we should stick around.” Okay, so secretly I wanted to say hello to a few old teachers and impress small children that the voice they heard on the radio in the morning had went to school here.

He paused what he was doing and glanced down the entrance way to where people were gathering around the gymnasium. He shrugged. “It’s fine. If something shows up, it’ll trigger the alarm. We have more places to put sensors.”

After that we placed the little origami flowers at the park, the community center, and at our parents’ apartment complex. It was starting to get close to noon and quite frankly the novelty of riding around on a motorcycle was starting to wear off. And I was hungry.

“We’ll stop by your apartment complex next, and then the mall…” He said, climbing onto his motorcycle.

I waved my hands in objection. “Wait, wait, wait. Change of plans. Next let’s go to AllFull. We can get lunch, and put a sensor there!”

“At AllFull? The family restaurant?” he asked, his lip curled in distaste.

“Yeah, Meiko and I usually go there for lunch on the second of the month. They've got a free bread special,” I said, “And what’s wrong with AllFull?”

“It’s just… I dunno. The name sounds like awful in English. Kids are always just hanging around there. And there are so many good restaurants. Why go to a family chain?” he asked, ticking off reasons on his fingers.

“You sound like Meiko,” I sighed, whining a little. “You people and your standards. I’m hungry. Let’s go.” I started the Synchrocycle and left. A few moments later he had caught up. I could feel the annoyance rolling off of him. Well, I was annoyed too. I wasn’t some kanji machine just here to make his stupid origami sensors all day. I had to eat. And as I parked at the AllFull, I kept an eye out for Meiko. I didn’t have much hope that she’d come here without me, but maybe it was enough of a habit that she would anyway. Rou grumbled as he followed me to the entrance. I ignored him.

“Maybe we should just put the sensor out here. We can go someplace to else. There’s another hamburger place across the road,” Rou said, standing at the threshold of the entrance.

“I’m eating here. Meiko might…” I sighed and grabbed his wrist, “Come on, snob, it won’t,” he yanked his arm away and glared at me. I blinked at him in surprise. “Sorry. It won’t kill you. You don’t have to eat here.”

“I won’t,” he snapped.

“Alright, I’m sorry.” I held my hands up, and walked backwards into AllFull, turning only to nod at the hostess who indicated we could sit anywhere. I found a seat near the drink machine. Rou had sulkily followed me in, and he sat down across from me like he was trying to touch as little of the table and chair as possible. “The chair isn’t going to eat you,” I said, picking up the menu.

He snorted and handed over the origami paper. I scribbled the kanji on the paper, not really looking at it. Rou made it into a flower, but held onto it, fidgeting with it. “This place doesn’t feel right.”

“Feels fine to me. What’s your problem?” I asked. He just shook his head and peered warily around the room.

I ordered a cheese filled hamburger steak from the waitress. Rou just glared when he was asked what he wanted, so the waitress disappeared back into the kitchens. I got up to grab a melon soda from the drink bar. Rou was still holding onto the sensor.

“Here. I’ll put it on the floor under the booth. I don’t think anyone will notice it right away.” I said, holding out my hand for the flower. He handed it over and I ducked under the table and tucked it under the booth. As soon as the paper touched the ground, black lines seeped up from the tiles, joining together to make a massive inky spider web across the entire restaurant floor. “Uh. Is that supposed to happen?” I asked, sitting back up.

“No. We’re in trouble. Transform now,” he said, scrambling to perch on his chair.

“Oh, Rou. I’m hurt.” A ReMare with mandibles and too many limbs appeared, leaning casually on the drink bar. She had bright purple lines glowing over her inky body and purple armor that put an odd emphasis on her chest.

“Spider,” Rou said with a scowl.

“It’s Arachne. Don’t teach your pet bad manners.” She gestured and the flower I had placed on the floor appeared in her hand. “What’s this little morsel?” She put it in her mouth and the Time Driver made a whooping alert sound. The other diners looked alarmed, and started running out. However, those that touched the inky lines on the floor found themselves stuck. A little boy tugged at his mother’s hand, but she couldn’t move her feet.

And Meiko walked in. She stopped and stared at the struggling people, and at the monster. I couldn’t help but stare at her. She was here. She came after all!

And this was the worst possible moment for her to come.

“Don’t touch the webs! But please! Take my son!” the mother said. Meiko nodded. She scooped up the little boy, who was now kicking and screaming, and carefully took him outside.

“Now, stupid,” Rou hissed at me.

“Right,” I said, staring at the spider monster. I climbed up onto the booth and held up the Time Driver. I uncapped the Memoka and brought the Time Driver down, swiping the Memoka across it. I put the Driver to my waist and shouted “Henshin!” and put the Memoka in the slot on the side of the driver. Light swirled around me, and the belt cried out “This is your YEAR! Let’s go! Let’s go! Yeah!” while playing guitar music. I was Year again.

“So this is what Anubis was barking about? I’m surprised he didn’t try and eat you himself.” She said, lazily inspecting one of her hands.

Rou climbed over the table, shoving past me to make his way to the far end of the restaurant, gingerly avoiding the floor. He pulled at the mother of the little boy, trying to get her free.

“You’re not eating anyone!” I said, jumping over the table to launch an attack. She didn’t move from the place she was lounging. I soon figured out why. I landed in front of her, and I had intended to quickly bring up one leg to kick her in the face. Unfortunately, my feet landed on one of the inky black lines. Purple light pulsed through the web, away from me, leading to Arachne.

She laughed and I heard Rou swearing in the distance. “Oh, little butterfly, that’s where you’re wrong. Please, do keep struggling. Year’s energy is a delicious candy shell, but I’d much rather have your memories.”

I stopped struggling and she made a pouty noise. “Tisk. Too bad. You’ve got to make it difficult, hm?” She stood up straight and stretched all three pairs of arms. “That’s okay. I like to play with my food.”

“Rou?” I yelled out, glancing back to where he was standing on a table. “A little help would be nice.”

“I’m busy! Don’t get caught in the spider web!” he shouted back, helpfully. So very helpfully.

Arachne grabbed my arms and held them like she was greeting a treasured friend. “Let’s see if your candy shell has a weak point, shall we?” She pulled my arms at an awkward angle, so I leaned back hard and then flung myself forward at her, smashing my helmet into her chest plate. She hissed and stumbled back, using her extra arms as legs to keep herself from falling. I had no such luck, and fell flat on my face, right into the spider web.

“WHAT DID I TELL YOU?!” Rou shouted. I heard the rattle of silverware and a shower of clinking. Arachne gasped indignantly, and she stepped over me towards him. I heard more swearing and things being thrown around.

I tried to wriggle free, but the inky web held fast. I had one arm free, but I had to hold it awkwardly to keep it that way. And worst of all, every time the purple light pulsed through the web, I could feel my energy slipping away. I was starting to feel tired. I didn’t know how long the transformation would hold out, and I had a terrible feeling that if it faded, my mind would be next.

“Prism Charge complete,” my belt chimed. Oh good. I very carefully dislodged the Memoka with my free hand. “Prism Blade, GO! GO! GO!” It announced. I carefully aimed it down at the floor.

“What is she doing, Rou?” Arachne demanded. Rou laughed, and it sounded sort of strangled and breathless.

The Prism Blade extended out into the ground, sparking where it made contact. It did nothing to the tile floor, but it severed the web easily. I freed my helmet and my other arm, and then my knees and feet. The web started falling apart on the floor, bits and pieces dissolving while other patches remained. I stood and held the Prism Blade in front of me. “I’m living in color!” I shouted.

She rushed at me, grabbing at my arms and at the blade, trying to wrest it from my hands. “How dare you destroy my web?” she yelled, thrusting her face awfully close to mine, mandibles snapping. I slashed down with my sword and sliced off two of her arms. They turned to inky goop as they hit the floor. She screeched and flung me backwards into a table.

I scrambled up, returning to a defensive position.

The door chimed. Arachne glanced toward the sound, and started edging towards it. “FINISH HER!” Rou shouted, sounding alarmed.

I shut down Prism Blade and reinserted the Memoka into the Time Driver. It glowed, and I felt power surge through me. The Time Driver played some high energy music, before proclaiming “VANISHING POINT!” I jumped up and delivered a flying kick squarely to Arachne’s chest. She burst into a mess of black ooze, and a globe of purple light. I landed on one knee.

Meiko was standing in the doorway, staring down at me.

I stared up at her for a moment, and then jumped to my feet. “Are you alright? I’m sorry, that must have been such a shock, um…” I said, panicking. She had come back. She had known it was dangerous, but she had come back. She was there and I had fought in front of her.

“Yes, it was,” Meiko said, dryly. “Your son is safe, ma’am.” The woman thanked her and ran outside with the other patrons who had made it out.

Rou appeared beside me, plucking the purple globe of light out of the air. “We should set this right, Year, before the employees forget why they left.”

I nodded slightly, still staring at Meiko. I was exhausted, and it was starting to feel difficult to keep the Year transformation up, but I found myself not wanting Meiko to know that it was me. I couldn't bear the thought of her recognizing me and saying “oh, it’s you,” and then walking away.

“What happened here?” Meiko asked, stepping gingerly around the pile of black goop.

“This meathead here sprang the trap that spider monster set up and almost got both of us eaten,” Rou explained, shoving a table back to its proper position. “I knew it was a bad idea to come here,” he muttered.

“You just don’t like the food,” I grumbled, “How was I supposed to know it was a trap?” I righted a chair and put it back with its table. Meiko started picking up silverware, stacking them on a dirty plate on one of the tables. “Oh, um. Thank you,” I said, startled. She smiled at me and shrugged, before picking up some plastic glasses off the floor.

I guess I had supposed that with so much of her memory gone, she wouldn’t do the things she’d normally do. In school, if we caught a bully messing with someone’s stuff or pushing someone, she was always the one quietly setting things to rights, while I chased after the perpetrator. We had a friend who had tacks get put in his shoes every day. She just started coming to school early to remove them. I was so… so proud of her. And she didn’t even remember me. I sighed.

It took a long time to get all of the silverware cleaned up. “Did you have to throw every single fork, spoon and chopstick in this place?” I asked Rou, putting the last of the knives in a pile.

“It bought you some time while you were glued face first to the floor,” Rou said smugly.

Meiko laughed. A quiet, polite laugh, but a laugh nonetheless. I smiled behind my mask.

“By the way, do you mind if I say something about this on the radio?” Meiko asked. “I'm a reporter, you see...”

“Do what you want,” Rou said, scraping up black goop into a garbage bag.

Meiko nodded. “Then I need to go now. My lunch break is almost up.”

“Thanks for your help,” I said, “You were cool, helping that little boy.”

“You were the one fighting the monster… But you’re welcome.” She smiled a little and left. I watched her walk away.

“She’s gone, you can change back,” Rou said, “Although I don’t know why you didn’t before.”

“Meiko doesn’t know Year,” I said quietly, “and that’s fine, because at least she’s not supposed to know Year.”

“Hm.”

“It is fine,” I said, trying to be cheerful. I capped the Memoka and swiped my hand across the Time Driver.

It said “Erase, bye bye,” with its powering down noise. Once the armor disappeared, I realized I had been a string held taut, and a pair of scissors had just snipped it in two. That is to say, I found myself face first on the ground again.

 

 


	3. Sound Waves

I woke up to the sound of a microwave beeping, hushed swearing, and hurried footsteps. I opened my eyes slowly, adjusting to the bright light from the window. I sat up slowly, a heavy leather jacket that had been covering me like a blanket slipped onto the floor. The radio was playing softly in the background. I recognized Meiko’s voice. It was the only thing I recognized. I wasn’t in my brightly colored magpie nest.

“Good. You’re awake.” Ah, that sharp and hasty voice was another one that I was becoming familiar with. Rou soon appeared with a bowl of curry and rice. He set it down in front of me on a coffee table. “I’ve been studying the new battle data,” he explained, gesturing to the large table in the center of the room. He had the Time Driver on the cradle and a laptop hooked up to it. A globe of purple light hovered over a circular pad, which was also connected to the laptop. I realized he had brought me to the little laboratory above the café. That solved one mystery, but presented another.

“How did I get here? Those stairs are a nightmare,” I said, attempting to talk through a yawn. “And you drive a motorcycle.”

“There’s an elevator. And Synchrocycle is adaptable. I changed it to side car mode,” he said. I gave him a dubious look. Any building with that terrible of a staircase had to have been built before having an elevator was required. And on top of that, why had he made me climb them in the first place? I was starting to think maybe he enjoyed seeing me suffer. “Eat up. You need your energy,” he said, gesturing to the curry.

No need to tell me twice. I picked up the bowl and spoon, and started scarfing it down. “It’s good,” I said between mouthfuls. “Did you make it?”

“Nope,” he denied casually, walking off to sit at his laptop. “Your friend has been talking about you all morning.”

“She was? But… Wait a second. It’s…” The last I could remember, it had been after lunch.

“April third. You were wiped out after the fight.”

“Oh.” So I had missed work again. I was on leave, but it still rankled. “Did her memory come back?”

“No. She’s talking about Year. Here, she said she was going to interview some people from AllFull,” Rou said, turning the radio up a little.

“Listeners, I have Oriha-chan on the line. Hello, Oriha-chan, how are you doing?” Meiko said. I was surprised she was doing interviews on her own. She hated doing them, especially by herself. She liked the predictable stuff, like the weather and traffic, and working with the mixer and the other equipment.

“Hey, Mei-chan. I’m alright. Still kinda freaked out about that weirdo spider lady,” The caller said.

“I know, it was pretty intense. Can you tell me what happened?” Mei asked.

“Well, I was sitting there at AllFull with my son, Rikkun, and out of nowhere, these weird black webs got all over everything,”

“And they trapped you?” Meiko asked.

“Yep. I don’t know, I probably would have been fine if I hadn’t stepped in so many of them. It felt like walking on chewing gum. I ended up getting stuck, but most everyone got out,” Oriha explained.

“They were stickier than that!” I protested, “Chewing gum, honestly!”

“It’s not as strong against normal humans,” Rou said, hushing me. “It traps light. She uses those webs to keep other ReMares out of her territory.”

“Because there was that weird spider lady, right?” Oriha explained, “Like some kind of monster? Rikkun had so many nightmares last night. But anyway, the spider lady wanted to eat some girl and her boyfriend.” I made a face. I barely even knew Rou. Rou coughed awkwardly. “And then… I guess I felt sort of confused for a while, but I remembered what happened after that.”

“Thanks for telling me. If anyone else has any information about these strange monsters or Year, please call in!” Meiko said, and I knew she had ended the call with the witness. “Next, traffic…”

“I’m going to call in.” I said, getting out my cell phone and selecting the radio station from my address book.

Rou sighed and threw his hands into the air. “Do what you want.”

I glared at him for a moment, before putting the phone up to my ear.

A very formal voice answered the phone. “Hello, you’ve reached FM 98.4 Mei Brigade. How can I help you?”

“Nawata-san, this is Year. Get me on the phone with Mei,” I said.

There was a moment of confused silence, and Nawata dropped some of her formality. “Is this Meiki? What are you talking about?”

“Nope. It’s definitely Year,” I said, forcing my voice a little lower, attempting to disguise it.

“Okay… just a moment please.” She sounded dubious, but at least she put me on hold instead of hanging up. I bet she thought this was some weird way to make up to Meiko for our supposed fight.

Meiko had finished the traffic. “Alright, listeners, I have a caller claiming to be Year, the masked fighter who defeated the terrible spider monster. Year, you’re on the air. What can you tell us about what’s going on?”

I took a deep breath. “Hello, Meiko-chan!” I said, “I don’t really know much either, but those ink monsters are dangerous. They eat memories, so if you see one, please get away quickly. I’ll do my best to protect this town, but I can’t be everywhere.”

“They eat memories? So, they don’t kill people?” Meiko asked.

I glanced at Rou, who looked away. Fat lot of help he was. “I suppose it depends on the memories eaten. Alzheimer’s kills people, after all… And even if it doesn’t, it can ruin lives.”

“I see. If a mother forgot her baby that would be a problem…” she said, sounding thoughtful, “or if a doctor suddenly forgot how to do a surgery.”

“Yes, or if someone’s best friend forgot their friendship…” I said, struggling to keep my voice steady. “Or if someone forgot how to drive a car while driving,” I added, to make it sound less weird.

“I see how it could be dangerous,” Meiko said.

I nodded, despite it being over the phone. There was an awkward silence.

“You said ink monsters. Does that mean there are more than just the spider?” Meiko asked.

“Yes. I’ve seen two others, but it seems like there might be a lot more than that.” I glanced at Rou. This time, he at least nodded distractedly.

There was a loud crashing sound, and I stood up immediately. “Meiko, what’s wrong?”

“It seems there’s a disturbance in the hall,” she said. Her voice sounded so small. I wanted to scoop her up and get her out of there right now. “Um. It seems there’s a shark monster. What do I do?” Rou finally looked up. He started unplugging the Time Driver from his equipment.

“Shit. I’ll be there as soon as I can. You should try to hide. I don’t know if locking the door will help, but it might confuse Sharky. Please just stay safe!” I said, dashing for the door. I heard a click, and realized she had hung up. The station went back to music.

“Don’t forget these,” Rou said, tossing me the Time Driver and Pair Device. “Your bicycle is downstairs. I’ll meet you there.”

“Right,” I said, and basically flung myself down the stairs. It was a miracle that I didn’t break anything on the way down. I found my bike and transformed it into the Synchrocycle. The wheels squealed as I peeled out of Kamitori Arcade. My knuckles blanched from clenching the handles.

There were blots in the parking lot. The Pair Device chimed and a button appeared on the screen. I pressed it, and bits of the armor changed at the back of the bike until the Synchrocycle had jets. I revved the engine and the jets blasted white light. I crashed the Synchrocycle into the blots. They exploded into a bunch of black puddles. I parked the bike and ran into the building, transforming as I ran.

Outside of the radio station office, a large black and pink dog monster was standing at attention.

“Anubis,” I growled.

“I see Sharky failed to destroy you. Well, I should have known better to let them handle that kind of responsibility on their own.” Anubis brushed imaginary dust off his arm.

“If you’ve hurt Meiko or the others…” I threatened, my hand hovering over the white Memoka. I wanted it to finish charging.

“Oh, I haven’t done anything. I’m chaperoning.” Anubis laughed, and shook his head. “Sharky didn’t know where to go next, and so I’m just showing them where the memories they want are. Isn’t it delightful? We already found your families and schools. No one is going to believe you if you say you’re friends with that girl. It won’t take much after that to make them think you don’t exist at all. You and Rou can start a little club.”

“We already have, and we’re going to protect everyone’s precious memories!” I shouted, running at him, fists clenched. I threw a punch, which he knocked aside easily. I tried again, and he stepped aside.

“Now, now. If you want to play with me, you’re a thousand years too early.” He took a punch, but used it to grab onto me and throw me across the room. “You may have hit me last time, but that won’t happen again!”

I struggled to get back to my feet. In a flash, Anubis was in front of me, and attacked with a flurry of kicks and punches that all I could do was block. I was soon trapped up against the elevators. I desperately hit the call button. Anubis growled and pinned my arms up against the elevator doors.

“Don’t think you can run away that easily, Year.”

I slammed my helmet down on his nose. He yelped and scampered back, holding his snout. “That hurt! You beast!” he barked, and rushed at me. At the last second, the door pinged open. I took a dive out of the way. Anubis tripped on my feet, and crashed into the back of the elevator. I scrambled to press the button for the roof, and then slipped out of the elevator before the doors closed. I could hear Anubis pounding on the walls, snarling about something or other. It seemed something I had done had made the poor puppy angry, and I couldn’t begin to imagine what that could be.

“Prism Charge Complete!” My belt announced.

“Gee, thanks, Time Driver,” I muttered, rubbing my side where Anubis had landed a particularly vicious kick. I hurried back to the station. All that had done was buy me a little time. And I still had to deal with a shark.

The station was in shambles. Filing cabinets had been knocked over, and papers were scattered around. “Guys?” I called out quietly. Nobody answered. “Guys?!” I called out louder. Dang. I raced to the break room. A few people had collapsed in there. Nawata, Tanaka, Itou. The drink machine was tilted precariously. I carefully set it right. I didn’t want it to fall on anyone. “Sorry, guys. I’ll be back,” I said quietly to my unconscious coworkers.

I hurried to the next rooms, checking in the bathroom. No one was there. I jogged to the back hall, where the studios were. As soon as I opened the door to the sound proofed hall, I heard yelling and a repetitive slamming sound.

Sharky was banging on the window into the studio that Meiko and I used. She had gathered the rest of the staff there, and had barricaded the door. “Get away from them!” I shouted, jumping and dive kicking Sharky. The kick knocked Sharky to their back.

“AGH! SHARKY DOES NOT LIKE THAT!” Sharky shouted as they stood up. They had changed. They had armor now, which mostly consisted of a chest plate and something that looked like a slashed leather skirt. Like a Roman or something. They also now had glowing green, purple, gold, and silver added to their blue and red lines that decorated their oozy ink body.

“I don’t like it when you hurt my friends!” I retorted, drawing the Prism Blade.

“YOUR FRIENDS ARE DELICIOUS!” Sharky shot back. “AND DOGGY SAID I SHOULD GET SO MANY COLORS. SO I CAN BE A HIGH REMARE.” Every step forward I took, they took one backwards.

“Why are you following that guy? He’s a jerk and you know it!” I said, slashing my sword in the air in frustration.

“YES. SHARKY WILL EAT HIM TOO. LATER.” Sharky nodded, staring warily at the sword. They still had the bright white scar on their forehead.

The door to the studio, which was now behind me, creaked open, drawing Sharky’s attention. I took that moment to lunge forward with the sword. It didn’t make contact. Sharky dissolved into black goo, sliding across the floor and solidifying into their shark monster form behind me. I stumbled forward a few steps before spinning around.

Oscar, the French-Japanese afternoon DJ was standing in the doorway in front of Sharky. He seemed to have immediately acknowledged his mistake, because he tried to slam the door shut again. Sharky grabbed onto it, and ripped it off the hinges. They flung it at me. I tried to slice it with the Prism Blade, but it just sparked and did nothing to the door. I braced for impact with my shoulder. I managed to stay standing, but dang that’s a heavy door. I shoved it aside, and it crashed to the floor. Sharky invaded the studio, and they were grabbing at my coworkers. Each one he grabbed, the lines of colored lights glowed a little more brightly on their body.

Except for Meiko. She had a microphone stand and was using it to wail on Sharky. Sharky barely noticed, but I felt a surge of affection for Meiko. “I got it,” I said, and put myself between her and the ReMare. She nodded and took a step back, still clutching the stand.

I slashed Sharky across the back with the Prism Blade. They gave a ferocious roar, and spun on me. They knocked the Prism Blade out of my hand. It skittered across the floor, the blade disappearing. I backed up slowly, Sharky advancing on me this time.

“SHARKY IS TIRED OF YOUR LIGHT. SHARKY WILL EAT YOU NOW.” The way they bared their teeth made me certain they meant the literal way, rather than just my memories.

“I’m tired of you stealing memories! MAYBE I’LL EAT YOU!” I shouted back, crouching down low and feral.

This seemed to give Sharky a moment of pause. “EAT SHARKY?” Like that was the most baffling thing they had ever heard of. To be fair, it was really stupid. I didn’t want to eat Sharky. They were made of ink and light. There wasn’t anything to eat. Whatever. I didn’t care. I took that moment of confusion and tackled Sharky.

They grabbed my shoulders, until we were locked in a shoving match, growling and shouting threats to eat each other.

“Year!” Meiko shouted. I spared her a glance. She had retrieved the white Memoka. I looked back at Sharky. I freed one of my hands, and Meiko tossed the Memoka to me. I snatched it out of the air, the blade reappearing at my touch.

Sharky yelled, and grabbed the hand. We struggled over the blade. I got close to touching the light to Sharky’s face, but suddenly the bright colored stripes on their body glowed intensely, and Sharky pried the Memoka out of my hands and chucked it violently out into the hallway. They shoved me down to the ground, and then advanced on Meiko.

“WHY DO YOU KEEP FIGHTING? SHARKY ALREADY TOOK WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT TO YOU! YOU SHOULDN’T CARE ABOUT THIS GIRL!” Sharky shouted.

Meiko shrank back, not answering.

“Meiko, run!” I shouted, struggling to stand up. There was no place to run. Sharky was huge and she was cornered.

A large purple origami spider raced in front of me. It sneaked up behind Sharky and glowed briefly. A small purple light web appeared beneath the shark ReMare.

Sharky tried to take another step but they were stuck. “WHAT? SHARKY CAN’T MOVE!” They struggled wildly. Meiko was able to slip past him. She came to me.

“Are you alright, Year?” she asked, helping me up.

“That doesn’t matter! What about you?” I said, holding her hand up.

“I’m fine, I think.” She glanced around the ruined studio.

Sharky was crying now. “BAD DOGGY! DOGGY! HELP!”

“It does matter,” Meiko added quietly.

“What?” I said, distracted by Sharky’s tantrum.

“You came to save us.” She patted my hand.

“Lovely, but maybe save the feelings for after you’ve taken care of Sharky,” Rou said, leaning against the door. The origami spider was in his hand now. Meiko and I both stared at him for a moment. “Oh, thank you, Rou, for saving us! No? Fine then, I see how it is.”

“Thanks, Rou,” I said, belatedly. I limped over to where Sharky had thrown the Prism Blade and picked up the Memoka. I stared at Sharky, who was sobbing dramatically. I felt a twinge of guilt.

“Are you going to use your finishing move again?” Meiko asked, watching raptly, “What was it? Vanishing Point?”

“They’re trapped,” I said, “I don’t know. It’s not fair…”

Sharky looked up, startled, “WHAT? FAIR? YOU’RE NOT GOING TO?” They seemed so relieved and confused.

That made it worse. This dumb shark expected me to destroy them.

“The web isn’t going to hold much longer, Year,” Rou said, “and they’re only getting stronger. This might be your only chance.” He glanced meaningfully towards Meiko.

I sighed. I needed my friend back. I shoved the Memoka back into the Time Driver. It glowed, and the Time Driver played some high energy music, before proclaiming “VANISHING POINT!” I jumped up to deliver a flying kick.

Black ink poured down from the ceiling, solidifying into Anubis, who slammed me to the ground.

He stood up, with one foot on my chest. “Sharky, Sharky, Sharky. You fool. You’ve gone and gotten caught in their nets.” Anubis tisked, and glanced at Rou, who was cringing like he had just watched someone get hit by a truck. Which was probably accurate, because I certainly felt like I had been hit by a truck.

“Is this your doing, Rou? It looks like one of your tricks,” Anubis said. His gaze landed on the origami spider, which was guarding Meiko and Rou, waving its front legs as an ineffective threat. Anubis’s lips curled in disgust. “Indeed. Let’s see…” He kicked me aside, and I rolled towards Meiko and Rou. They quickly moved to help me.

A staff with a large glowing pink gem at the top appeared in Anubis’s hand. He tapped the corners of the web with the butt of the staff. The purple light vanished. “Come along, Sharky. We’ve done enough today,” Anubis said, grabbing Sharky by the shoulder. They both disappeared in a splash of black ink.

Meiko suddenly looked baffled. “What’s going on?” She stood up, looking around the ruins of the room. “Did… Did you do this, Year?”

I shook my head weakly. It was too much energy to talk.

“Not on her own. The station was attacked by ReMares,” Rou said, and then explained what he had witnessed.

“Why don’t I remember this time?” Mei asked. “Why do you?”

“I’m actually surprised you remembered the last one, but I suspect it’s because Year defeated the ReMare, and couldn’t this time,” he paused and ignored her second question, “Year needs to rest and I need to see why the alarms didn’t go off,” Rou said and stood up, dragging me to my feet.

“I’m fine.” I said, pulling away from him. I staggered and Meiko caught me instead.

“No, you’re not. Go with him.” Meiko said, gently handing me back. “I’ll get answers later.”

“And what if they come back?” I asked.

“I’ll leave Spider with her.” Rou said.

“Arachne?” I asked, remembering that she hadn't liked it when he called her that.

“Whatever. She’ll protect the radio station, although I suspect the damage has already been done,” Rou said, picking up the paper spider and putting her on the desk.

“Shouldn’t we help clean up?” I asked, not really wanting to leave Meiko. Not because I was worried about her, but because she was worried about me. Maybe that was selfish, but it felt so much like how things used to be. And Meiko had been so cool, helping me fight Sharky.

“I’ve got it. I’ll explain it to the others and we’ll get it sorted out. It sounds like you’ve done enough today. Thank you for your hard work,” Meiko gave me a little bow.

I gave up. They were probably right. I was in a great deal of pain. “You too,” I mumbled, and Rou led me out, arm under my shoulder.

Outside in the parking lot he paused. “Are you going to pass out again?”

“No. I don’t think so? Probably not. Last time Arachne ate a lot of my energy. Today, I just got punched a lot,” I said, wryly. It felt odd saying that like it was better. “I could use a nap though.”

“Alright. I need to check on the sensor. You can wait here with your bike.”

I nodded and swiped my hand across the front of the Time Driver. “Erase, Bye bye!” it said. I staggered, and supported myself by leaning against the barrier that surrounded the parking lot. I held my side, as if trying to keep pain from spilling out. Or blood. Huh. That sure was blood seeping into my yellow shirt. “What a hero. All I do is get my ass kicked,” I mumbled to myself.

Rou had already wandered off to where he had placed the pink origami flower. It didn’t take long though for him to come back. His brows were furrowed and I could tell by the set of his jaw that he was clenching his teeth.

“You’re angry,” I told him, a bit stupidly.

“What? Yes, of course. Someone took the sensor. They’re not supposed to be able to resist eating it. I know Anubis can’t, and I sure as hell doubt Sharky would be smart enough to… You’re bleeding!” he realized.

“Sharky’s gotten smarter. They’re using lots of bigger sentences. Still loud though,” I said, feeling lightheaded.

“Goddamn idiot,” he muttered.

“Hey, rude,” I objected dizzily. I wasn't sure if he was talking about Sharky or me, but I wouldn't stand for it. I stepped forward to give him a piece of my mind and found I probably shouldn't be standing at all. Rou caught me around the shoulders, keeping me from falling on my face.

With his free hand, he connected the Pair Device on the Synchrocycle to a similar device on his own motorcycle with a long cord. He tapped the screen a few times, until it chimed, and the armor reshuffled until it was attached to his motorcycle as a white sidecar. “Get in.”

I didn’t bother arguing. I climbed in and slumped against the car back. I drifted as he drove us back to the café. He parked in an alley, and helped me out of the side car. He twisted the handle of the door, but had to kick it to open it wide enough to bring me into a kitchen. A bell chimed somewhere.

A young man wearing an apron appeared from the other side of the room. His hair was bleach blond and tied in a short pony tail. “Again? What the hell, Jiro?”

“Shut up, don’t call me that. I’m using the elevator,” Rou grumbled, leading me over to a sort of shady looking closet.

“Oh there really is an elevator. Good… Those stairs are awful,” I muttered.

“Is she bleeding? Jiro, fuck, this is a kitchen! Frickin’ idiot, I’m taking her,” the stranger scowled, “Bring her into my room.” He led the way.

Rou sighed and made an annoyed noise, but he brought into a small room without complaining. He actually seemed kind of relieved. The room had a bed covered in a quilt, and there was a neat line of tiny figurines arranged on the dresser. It was an odd mixture of cute animals and robots. They mostly looked like things one could get out of a gachapon machine.

The stranger put his hands on his hips. Now that he was close, he seemed really short, especially compared to Rou and I. It was pretty cute. “Put her down and shoo,” he said, waving his hands at Rou. Rou hesitated. “Get, go on!” Rou retreated from the room. “Clean the blood off the floor!” he shouted after him.

“Sorry,” I mumbled.

“Don’t worry about it, kiddo.” That was rich coming from a boy who seemed like he was the same age as me, and was almost an entire head shorter. “I’ll get you patched up. Let me see.” I showed him the gash on my side. He frowned and muttered something about idiots as he got out a large box of first aid supplies. He cleaned the wound carefully. “I’m sorry,” he said when I hissed at the sting of disinfectant. “How’d you get caught up in Jiro’s mess?”

“I kind of stole his belt,” I said. He snorted. “Why do you call him that?”

“It was a misunderstanding at first. I thought his name was Mei Jiro, instead of Meiji Rou. Rou’s a weird name,” he said, chatting as he worked. “Now, it’s just because it annoys him.”

“Oh. What’s your name?” I asked.

“Meiaki Akito, at your service,” he said, flourishing a roll of bandages. “My friends call me Aki. And you’re Kimura Mei, of the Mei Brigade, also known as Meiki. You’re lucky. I don’t think this is going to need stitches.” He started wrapping my torso.

“You’re good at this,” I said, watching.

He snorted, “I ought to be. I’m a doctor.”

“But…” I frowned.

“Why am I working at a café?” he asked for me.

I nodded.

“Well, you’re a radio host. Why are you fighting monsters? Sometimes things happen. I decided I wanted to run a café, and here I am,” he said cheerfully, and finished bandaging my injury. “Anything else needs a bandage?” I shook my head no. “Then I’ll let you change your clothes. Here.” He opened a wardrobe that was stuffed dangerously full. It was a sharp contrast to the neat and tidy room. He plucked a large black tee shirt that had a sakura blossom printed on the back. “Here, this should work for now.” He tossed it to me. “Do you need help?”

“No, I think I’ll be okay. Thanks.” I said.

“No problem. You can rest here as long as you like. I’ll make something for you to eat in the café. Just holler if you need anything,” Akito said, and left me in the room by myself.

I peeled off my bloodied shirt, wincing as the action pulled at injuries and sore muscles. I folded it carefully, and put on the shirt Akito had offered me. It had to be way too big for Akito, because it fit me loosely. Exhausted, I collapsed on the bed.

 


	4. Comrades

“What the hell are you thinking, Jiro? They’re talking about ReMares on the radio again!”

“How is that my fault?”

“You could have at least told that other girl not to blab all over the place! What if the High ReMares get involved? I’d rather not have to deal with the rainbow asshole squad! And they’ll definitely chew up Year and spit her out!”

“Shut up, Aki, you’re going to wake up Mei! They might already be involved. Someone took all of the sensors without triggering them.”

“Rou, I swear,” Akito started.

For the second time in one day, I woke up in a strange place to strange sounds. It wasn’t a habit I wanted to cultivate. I heard my name and sat up slowly, cringing at the pain in my side.

“Don’t start with this again, Akito,” Rou said, sounding exhausted.

“I ought to keep the Time Driver so you can’t get her and her friend killed,” Akito said.

“And what are you going to do then? Are you going to take her place?” Rou asked.

“No. I’m not using it again. I told you.”

Someone had taken my shirt and vest and washed them. They were hanging neatly on a hanger in front of the door. I ignored it, and I pushed the door open. I didn’t want to fight with changing clothes again just yet.

“Then I need her to fight,” Rou said. He was glaring down at Akito, arms crossed. Akito matched the glare with equal ferocity.

“Can I at least eat first?” I said, yawning.

They jumped apart like I had fired a super soaker at a pair of cats. “Oh, good! You’re awake!” Akito said, suddenly sunny. “Dinner will be ready shortly, so sit down. You shouldn’t move around so much. Can I get you anything? Water? Juice? A sandwich?”

“The Time Driver, please.” I held out my hand. “Thank you for washing my clothes,” I added. If he was going to be polite, I suppose I could be.

Rou grinned. “I told you so.”

Akito shot him a dirty look. “Did you hear our conversation?”

“Yes. You weren’t trying to hide it, were you?” I replied innocently, “Because if you were, you were too loud.”

Akito sighed. “Don’t you realize how dangerous fighting the ReMares is?”

“I think I’ve got an idea,” I said, not bothering to disguise the sarcasm. Rou snickered.

Akito continued, his expression still stern, “Why are you doing this? You don’t have to. Jiro will make another driver eventually. He’s the one that has a vendetta. You wouldn’t even know anything was wrong if you weren’t Year.”

“I want to protect everyone’s precious memories,” I said, repeating what Rou had yelled at me the first time I fought. Something I had vowed as a small child. “And even if I didn’t, I couldn’t stop until I get Meiko’s memories back.” I paused, watching his face. So far, his expression had been stony, like he didn’t think that was a good enough answer. I wasn’t sure I thought it was a good enough answer. So I shrugged and decided to be flippant instead. “It’s boring, living in a town where nothing happens… Or rather, where it seems like nothing happens because nobody can remember anything exciting.”

I wasn’t sure he’d buy that, but Akito rolled his eyes at this, and handed over the Time Driver. “Goddammit, you found a perfect idiot, Jiro. Good job.”

“Hey!” I frowned.

“Thank you,” Rou said, sounding smug. I shot him a look too. “No, no. He’s just not into the whole hero thing. You actually did very well today. I didn’t expect Sharky to have seven colors already.”

“SEVEN? Give that back right now!” Akito said, trying to snatch it out of my hands. I held it out of the way.

“Hey, hey! That hurts!” I said, clutching it to my side.

Akito backed away, and this time advanced on Rou. “I can’t believe you let her fight a ReMare with SEVEN colors!”

“She did that on her own,” Rou said, apparently unconcerned. “Mei, could I have the Time Driver? I think I can do a little tweaking. You shouldn’t have gotten injured through the suit. Sharky was strong, but it should have held up to more of a beating.”

I nodded and handed it over. He attached it to a cradle that was attached to his laptop on the counter, and started typing into a program. “I’m pretty sure this was Doggo’s fault, not Sharky’s.” At their blank look, I amended “Anubis. I fought him on the way in.” Akito gave a low whistle.

“You fought him too? That was incredibly dangerous,” Rou said, his eyebrows drawn together in concern. Or was it concentration? He didn’t look up from the laptop.

“Are you on his side now?” I pointed a thumb at Akito.

“My side? No, no. I’ve changed my mind. You fought Anubis and you’re not paste? You’ll do.” Akito said, waving his hands in protest. “He’s a monochrome, but he’s one of the strongest beneath the High ReMares. Heck, he might even be stronger than some of them.”

“Your oven timer is about to go off,” Rou said, still typing.

Akito glanced over at it. “So it is!” He gave a dramatic gesture of surprise before lazily walking over to the oven.

“Rou, I thought you said you were the only one who could remember the ReMares?” I asked, watching Akito fuss with the oven.

“I am. He’s got the same protection you do,” Rou explained. “Although he claims he's retired.”

“Sorry, this face is too cute to keep getting busted up by monsters.” Akito said cheerfully, taking out a casserole dish out of the oven.

“So… He was Year?” I asked, confused.

“No, he’s got a prototype. He’s Autumn.” Rou said.

“I was Autumn,” Akito corrected. “Jiro’s idea of a joke.”

“You’re the one with Aki in your name twice,” Rou said. He disconnected the Time Driver, and passed it back to me. “That’s all I can do for now. It should help at least.”

“Ah yes. A pun on my name has declared that I am the master of jack-o-lanterns and dead leaves!” Akito said, giving a curtsy as he carried plates over. “It’s practically destiny! I better go get my ass kicked a thousand times because of a pun!”

Now, I know I have my own sarcastic streak, but his sarcasm was pressing my buttons. “I don’t really see why you’re joking about this. People’s lives are being ruined!” I snapped, irritated. “My best friend, who I’ve been closer to than a sister my whole life, doesn’t remember me! Rou’s own mother doesn’t remember him! I don’t see how you can turn your back on people like that. Those memories are precious!”

“You can always make new memories, Kimura-san,” Akito said slowly, as if trying too hard to be patient with me but failing. “You don’t have to fight.”

That hit me hard, but I struggled against it. “Just to have them taken away again?” I had saw both Meiko and Rou trying to fight alongside me, protecting innocent bystanders at the risk of their own life, despite not having powers. And if Rou wasn’t lying, I had apparently fought them without powers too. And this guy! “If you’ve got the power to fight the ReMares, then you should use it!” Rou glanced over at me, as watchful as a cat. I squirmed a little. I had failed twice to defeat Sharky.

“I don’t have to be a hero. I can make some goddamn curry and enjoy my life,” Akito said, slamming down a plate of baked cheesy curry rice. “It’s something that actually makes people happy. Eat your damn food.”

I stared at him. He stared back, still angry. Rou had stood up, awkwardly reaching out as if he wanted to separate us. I shoved the plate back at Akito. “I’m going home. Don’t bother.” I stood up.

“Don’t be ridiculous. You need to eat,” Akito said, sternly, pushing the food back at me. “Transforming takes a lot of energy.”

I was starving. I narrowed my eyes at him and sat back down. I started eating purposefully. Much to my further annoyance, it was really good. I finished and said “Thanks for the food. I’m going home.” This time he didn't object. I went back into the room to change my clothes and left the building.

Rou stopped me in the alley.

“What? Are you going to scold me for being a hypocrite?” I demanded, turning to face him.

“Do you feel that you are?” Rou asked, his tone oddly gentle again.

I glared at him for a long moment before sighing. “Maybe… I told him that he should fight, even though I keep…” I trailed off.

“There’s more than one way of being right. If you really want to quit, you can. He was right. I’ll make another belt,” Rou said slowly, as if wrestling his pride to say each word.

“I can’t quit!” I said immediately, “I need to get Meiko’s memories back!”

“You don’t have to decide now. Think about it,” Rou said, before going back into the building. “Making new memories is an option.”

I did think about it as I drove away. When I got home, I hesitated in front of my door. I could see light coming from Meiko’s kitchen window. I heard her singing softly as she washed the dishes. Without really thinking about it, I gravitated to her door. I knocked on the door in a certain rhythm, trying not to think about how she wouldn’t remember that I always knocked that way.

She opened the door a crack, “Can I help you?”

“Yeah. Meiko, can I come in?” I said, suddenly fighting the urge to start crying. One thing that jerk had right. I could make new memories.

She looked me over. I must have looked like a mess. I felt like a mess. I was bruised and bandaged, my braid was two days old. She nodded and let me in. “What’s wrong… Kimura-san?” She sounded like she had to struggle to remember my name.

“Everything! Starting with you calling me Kimura-san!” I flopped into my usual spot at her kitchen table, putting my head in my hands.

She stood a careful distance away from me, “I don’t know you that well…”

“You do though! We’ve been best friends since I don’t even know when. I thought it’d be a good idea, not to press the issue when you lost those memories, but I can’t handle it. I just can’t. We’re the Mei Brigade.”

“Can you prove that?” she asked cautiously.

I patted my pocket for my cell phone. I thought I found it, but it was the Time Driver. I took it out and set it on the table and then took out my cell phone from another pocket. I opened the pictures and held out the phone for Meiko. She took it gingerly and scrolled through it silently. I knew what she’d see. Hundreds of selfies that we had taken together over at least the span of the past two years.

“These could be photoshopped,” she said gently. My heart sank. I had really hoped that would work.

“I’m not that good at computers. You’d know that if…” I sighed.

“Is there anyone else that I trust who could confirm this?”

I put my head in my hands. “Not any more. That’s what the attack on the radio station was about. To make sure nobody remembers that we’re friends.”

Realization dawned on her face, and I felt a leap of hope. “The radio station… Is that?” She said, gesturing at the Time Driver. “Are you Year?”

That was not the realization I wanted, but I’d take it. She had helped Year. “Yes. You wanted your questions answered, well, here I am,” I said.

She sat down at the table, “Tell me everything. From the beginning. And I mean the beginning. I want to know how we met. I want to know what I am missing.”

“It will take a while,” I warned her.

“It’s fine. Please.”

So I did. I told her about how we had been neighbors as children, how I had charmed her mother for snacks, how she had calmly explained things to my parents in a way that almost always got me out of trouble. I told her how she had gotten a scar on her arm climbing a tree to rescue a kitten, and how I had broken my arm in the same incident trying to rescue her. I told her about the photo incident in elementary school.

I told her how she had always helped me with homework, how I had always stood up for her. How we had become known as the Mei Brigade. How I had went to all of her choir concerts, how she had cheered me on in kendo competitions. How we had promised one year in high school to always be together. How we had ran the school media club and how we had become radio hosts at our college radio, and then at the local station. How sometimes she punched my arm affectionately when I was being dumb. How I always tried to push her into the spotlight because I knew she was brilliant.

She listened, stopping me only to get up and make coffee for the both of us.

It was late when I finished with what had happened over the last three days. We sat there in silence for a long moment. I felt wrung out. I felt like if emotions were muscles, I had just done a triathlon. I felt sore, physically and emotionally, but at least I felt like I had accomplished something.

“I’m so sorry,” Meiko said at length. I looked at her. She bit her lip, like she did when she was thinking hard. “I can’t remember…”

“I didn’t think you would… It looks like I have to fight Sharky after all.” I sighed.

“I believe you though,” she said quietly. “I saw that spider monster. And you seem to know me so well. It’s a little scary.”

I looked up from my coffee sharply. “I’m so sorry! I know this must be super creepy. I probably sound like a stalker or something…”

She shook her head. “No. I actually want to thank you.”

“Thank me?” I repeated, baffled.

“Yes. I was worried about you at work. You seemed so… Like you were falling off a building. And I couldn’t understand why, so I couldn’t catch you,” she said. Now that she said it, it seemed like an apt description of how I felt. “I’m glad you told me what’s going on.”

“Me too,” I said. “Can we be friends again? I understand if it’s not the same right away, but… I want to try. I felt really dumb trying to hide being Year and the memories you lost from you… I don’t like it.”

Her gaze flickered away, and then back to me. “Make new memories, huh?” she said, repeating what I had told her Akito had said.

“Yeah, I think he was right about that, if nothing else,” I said, making a face.

She laughed, and I couldn’t help but smile. “Of course,” she said, “I can use more friends.”

“Alright. Good. I’m glad. Good. Very good,” I said, feeling like I had enough butterflies in my stomach to lift me off the ground.

“Indeed,” she said, her tone serious, but her eyes were smiling. “Then, are you coming to work tomorrow?”

“I… Yes! Okay!” It felt like the sun was coming up in the pit of my stomach. Things would be alright. I just knew it. I glanced at the time. It was well after three in the morning. “Oh no! I’m so sorry. It’s so late! I should go.” I braced myself on the table to stand up. Pain lanced through my side and I sat back down abruptly.

“Stay,” she said, putting her hand on my arm. I froze. Her hand was soft and warm. “You’re hurt.”

I nodded. It didn’t take long for her to set up a futon. I made a motion to lay down on it, but she shook her head and waved a hand at her own bed. “Here. I don’t want you sleeping on the floor like that.”

“But it’s your bed…” I said.

“And you’re hurt. I like sleeping on the futon sometimes. Deal with it,” she said, gracefully sinking down onto the futon and curling up under the blanket, pretending to fall asleep immediately. There would be no arguing with her now, so I laid down carefully on her bed.

The next morning, or rather, a few hours later, Meiko shook me awake. “We’ve got to get going soon. I made breakfast.”

I nodded. We ate together in sleepy silence. I excused myself to get fresh clothes from next door, and met her at her doorstep.

“The bus is coming soon. We should hurry,” Meiko said.

“Actually, I can take us on my bike,” I offered. “I should bring it in case Rou calls about another ReMare.”

“A bike?” Meiko asked skeptically.

“I mentioned it, didn’t I? I’ll show you!” I led her down to where I had parked the motorcycle. “Isn’t it cool?” I grinned.

“Is it safe?” She circled the Synchrocycle.

“Super safe. Climb on!” I offered her a second helmet, and straddled the bike. She hesitated and then climbed aboard, arms looping gently around my waist. Happiness bubbled up inside me, and I could almost ignore my injuries. We got to work early.

“Oh, you’re here today, Kimura-san?” Nawata-san, the receptionist said, surprised. “I totally forgot you worked here.”

“I’ve only been gone two days…” I muttered, but I knew it wasn’t her fault. She had recognized me on the phone yesterday, but after Sharky…

Meiko had sat herself down at the huge pile of paperwork on the meeting table, already sorting it. “Oh, thank you, Mei-chan. I don’t know how everything got to be such a mess,” Nawata-san said.

“I told you yesterday. One of those ReMare ink monsters attacked and messed up the office,” Meiko said quietly.

“You did say that, didn’t you? Heck, I kind of thought you were trying to play some War of the Worlds nonsense with that,” Nawata-san said. I sat down to help Meiko.

“Nope,” Meiko said, arranging paper in neat piles. “In fact, it turns out Mei… Meiki here is Year.”

“Your little hero that you’ve been talking about nonstop?” Nawata-san said, eyes widening in surprise. I could feel my cheeks burning. Meiko had called me by my nickname. And she thought I was heroic? I didn’t think I had done anything overly heroic, at least not that Meiko would remember, but obviously I had made some kind of impression.

Meiko coughed and held a piece of paper up to the light. “Something like that.”

“Well, goodness. I’d like to see that, I suppose.” Nawata-san said, peering at me.

“I hope not. It’s not a toy,” I said, “I’d rather a ReMare didn’t attack you, Nawata-san.”

“Oh. Yes, I suppose not,” she said dismissively.

We sorted papers for a little while longer before heading back to our booth. Someone had put the door back on its hinges. There were small hints of the fight. New dings and scratches on cabinets and a tuft of sound absorbing foam was missing from the wall.

The show went well. If we weren’t as in sync as we usually were, and if she didn’t get passing inside jokes, the air was a lot easier between us. I was surprised no one called in and commented about it, although our Producer gave us a thumbs up as she passed the window to our studio.

After we finished our morning show, we took off our headphones. “Good work, Meiko!” I said cheerfully.

“You too, Meiki.” Meiko smiled. “Shall we go get lunch?”

“Yes! I want ramen!” I cheered.

“Alright, that sounds good,” Meiko said, “There’s a place next door that’s pretty famous.”

“Yes! That one!” I crowed. It was our favorite place to get ramen.

We chatted as we walked across the parking lot. “We go here a lot, at least once a week,” I explained, my steps bouncy. I was actually tempted to skip, but my side still hurt. “You usually give me your soft boiled egg.”

“I do, do I?” Meiko’s tone sounded incredibly dubious. “Presumptuous.”

I frowned at her, suddenly worried that I had said something that would ruin our budding new friendship. A slow mischievous grin spread across her face, and I realized she was teasing me. “You don’t even like eggs in your ramen,” I shot back.

“I don’t. You can have it,” She said, waving a hand like a queen dismissing a displeasing dish.

“Gee, thanks a lot, your highness,” I said.

Across the street someone shouted my name, and then came hustling across traffic like some kind of moron. It was Akito. I crossed my arms. “Meiki-san, hey! How are you holding up?”

“I’m fine. Living in color,” I said, offhandedly. “Meiko, this is Meiaki-san.” She nodded and said nothing.

“Go ahead and call me Akito,” he said, making a face when I said Meiaki. “I heard you were back to work. Congrats! Did you?” He made a gesture with his hand that looked like a shark chomping and then hit it with his other hand.

“No. I told her what’s going on. We decided we could try to be friends again. Make new memories,” I said.

“Oh reeeeeally. So I see I’m owed an apology,” he said, hands on his hips, leaning forward expectantly. “You don’t need to fight to move on and have a good life.”

“The boat’s sinking, Meiaki-san. I have to bail out water and repair the hull,” I said, with absolutely zero intention of apologizing. “If I don’t do both, it’ll still sink.”

Akito looked at me blankly, then glanced at Meiko. “Does she always do that?”

“Do what?” Meiko asked.

“Ramble off weird metaphors like they make sense,” Akito said.

“I have no idea. It made perfect sense to me, though. Maybe you should think about it a little longer. Meiki, shall we go eat?” Meiko said.

“Yes, please!” I said “I am so hungry I could eat a—“ I was interrupted by a loud siren sound coming from my vest pocket. Akito shook his head and started walking off in the opposite direction, hands in his pockets. “Dang!” I scrambled to get the Time Driver out. It just flashed an icon of a pink flower. “Listen, can I take a rain check? I’ve got to go.” I was already heading towards my bike.

“Let me go with you,” Meiko said, following me.

“It’s going to be dangerous,” I said. “I don’t want you to get hurt, or lose any more memories.”

“And what happens if another ReMare shows up here while you’re on the other side of town? It’s safest with you.” Meiko said sternly.

I opened my mouth to object, but I realized that she might be right. “I—“

“Besides, you need help. You’re still hurt,” she interrupted me.

“I have to hurry, let’s go,” I said quickly before I could be interrupted again. She grinned and climbed on the back of the Synchrocycle behind me. I tapped on the Pair Device and it gave me a map, and Rou’s voice came out of a speaker in my motorcycle helmet.

“It’s down by the river. Please be careful. I’ll meet you there,” Rou said.

“On my way,” I responded as I started driving. “We didn’t put a sensor there.”

“Someone might have moved it. Hopefully a human and not a ReMare setting a trap. Be very very careful,” Rou commanded again.

“Aye aye, captain,” I said, and there was a click and the communication link shut off.

We got to the river at the same time as Rou. He frowned when he saw Meiko. “What’s she doing here?”

“I thought I’d see the cherry blossoms,” Meiko said quietly. They were in a sort of bedraggled state after the rain, but there were cherry trees still in bloom along the river. “Is that a problem?”

Rou opened his mouth to protest, and then shut it. “Whatever. Do what you want.” Meiko smiled and started walking down the path towards the water’s edge.

“She has that effect,” I said cheerfully, following her. “Let’s go find our ReMare.”

“What happened?” Rou said, jogging to catch up to me. “I thought you were keeping your identity secret.”

“We’re making new memories,” I said.

“Don’t tell that to Aki. He’ll be insufferable,” Rou warned.

“He was, until I explained why he was still wrong,” I said cheerfully. “I don’t really care what he thinks.” We stopped at the side of the river. “Ugh it reeks,” I grumbled.

“Who reeks?” A shrill voice came from the water. “You reek, you freak!”

“Sounds like our guy,” Rou said, “Get ready.”

I got out the Time Driver and Memoka. “Meiko, stay back, okay?” I said. She nodded and strolled over to a bench a few meters away.

The water bubbled ominously and a bike and half a boat popped to the surface, followed by a few soda cans and a baby doll. Finally a ReMare emerged from the water. He had two different shades of blue lines decorating his body. His eyes glowed a glittering gold. He looked like an otter that had rolled in garbage and called it armor. And he was tiny. He had to have been half my height. “Don’t you people know to knock first?” He scowled at us, “Well, come on! Slake your thirst!”

“Oh god, it’s adorable,” I blurted out.

Rou rolled his eyes. “Be careful.”

“Call me cute, I’ll give you the boot,” he snarled.

“That doesn’t really rhyme, does it?” Meiko said, having come a little closer upon seeing that the ReMare was tiny.

He made a rude gesture at her.

“I’m so sorry. Did you happen to eat a pink origami flower?” I asked.

“Yeah, what are you gonna do if I did, kid?” He crossed his arms.

“How did it get here? Did you take it from someplace else?” Rou asked.

“I don’t roam from home,” the otter monster said, gathering up bits of trash and nibbling daintily on the bike handle.

“Is that… good?” I asked, baffled.

“Oh yes. The memories it contains are very yummy. Why, do you think it’s funny?” the otter said, bristling.

“No, no. I just…” I looked back at Rou. “Do you think we can just go? He doesn’t seem like he’s hurting anyone.”

“Just my brain,” muttered Meiko.

Rou sighed, “Whatever. Eating memories from trash is fine. Let’s go.”

“Bye! Sorry for bothering you!” I said, waving at the cute little garbage otter. We started heading back to the bikes.

“Can all ReMares eat memories from garbage like that? Couldn’t they do that instead of messing with people?” I asked Rou, who shook his head.

“I don’t know. I think that guy might be a little odd,” Rou said, “It’s not something I’ve ever seen them do before.”

“Huh. Well, we were just about to go get lunch, do you want to join us?” I asked.

There was a heavy whomping sound, rapidly getting closer. “They insult me and then think they can just wander off for fun? Well, that’s it, I’m done,” the otter’s shrill voice sang out to the rhythm of the thumping. I spun around.

It turns out the tiny little trash otter was not tiny at all. The part that had stuck out of the water was coming out of a massive sludgy black turtle body that had lurid bronze streaks across the carapace like a massive animal had scratched it. It actually sort of reminded me of the bright white scars the Prism Blade had left on Sharky. The atmosphere seemed to shimmer and gray around it. The sakura trees near it all immediately dropped their few remaining flowers and seemed to wither.

“This is bad, this is very, very bad! Transform!” Rou shouted, grabbing Meiko and half dragging her across the parking lot.

I didn’t need to be told twice. I raised the Time Driver up, and drew a line across it with the Memoka, and placed it on my waist. “Henshin!” I shouted, and put the Memoka in the slot on the side of the driver.

“It’s your YEAR! Let’s go! Let’s go! Yeah!” White light swirled around me and I was Year again. I posed, cape flapping in the breeze. The ReMare stopped advancing, staring down at me. He hit one little otter paw into the other, stomping his massive feet to make the ground shake. I cringed, leaning away from him. How the heck was I supposed to fight a fifteen foot tall otter turtle abomination?

“I’m sorry for calling you cute?” I said. I did not think it would actually work, but in the off chance it did, I said it anyway. The Prism Blade wasn’t charged yet, and I didn’t think punching would be the best option.

“It’s too late, oblivion is your fate,” the otter squeaked, and tromped towards me. I glanced back at the others and then back at the ReMare.

It was now or never. “I don’t think so, buddy,” I shouted as I ran towards the monster. Instead of punching it, I took a dive, sliding under the carapace, narrowly missing the massive feet. I scrambled to my feet. “Over here!”

The otter’s head spared me a glance, but quickly returned his focus to the ones that didn’t have super powered armor. They hadn’t made it to the parking lot yet, and the otter monster, while slow, was also huge and covered a lot of ground.

If I didn’t do something right away, he would catch up with them. And as it seemed like the Memoka was not going to start chiming right on cue, I did the next best thing and ran up to the ReMare’s massive leg, and -oh damn, it was like an entire tree- but I sure punched it as hard as I could.

Now, when I had punched other ReMares, their bodies had squished like a bit like punching dough. It gave, but it still kind of held its own shape.

Punching this ReMare, however, was like punching a swamp. The ink squelched unpleasantly, and my hand just kept going, until I was elbow deep in inky ooze. I tried yanking my arm out. It was stuck fast. And the ReMare seemed manifestly unconcerned. He took another heavy step, knocking me off my feet and dragging me an entire meter.

I struggled to regain my feet but the only way to get leverage was to put my other hand on the ReMare’s leg. That limb promptly was stuck too. “Guys! Run! Get out of here!” I shouted at Rou and Meiko. I dug in my heels, trying to slow the turtle otter’s advance. I felt like a tiny kitten trying to stop a full grown human from doing something. He continued to ignore me.

“Wait, Year, I’ll figure out a way to get you out of there,” Rou said, going through his saddle bag on his motorcycle.

“If you—“ I was interrupted with another heavy step forward. “If you don’t get Meiko out of here, I will kick your ass!”

“You’re not kicking anyone’s ass like that,” Rou shot back.

“My feet are still free! I will totally do it!” I shouted.

“Liar, liar, stuck in a mire,” the otter taunted. He stomped his back feet a few times, shaking me like a rag doll. With a burst of speed I had not thought him capable of, he rushed at Meiko and Rou. He picked up Rou first with his tiny otter arms, swirls of pink appearing on his shell. He quickly threw Rou aside.

“Rou! No!” I shouted, renewing my struggle to get free.

“Prism Charge Complete!” The Time Driver chimed. I glanced down at it and then over at Meiko, who had stooped to check on Rou. I couldn’t get the blade out. My hands were stuck.

“Stupid piece of garbage, too late again,” I muttered, “Meiko! Run! Please!”

She looked up, but it was too late. The otter monster took her too, and shook her. The blue markings on his body flared, and he discarded Meiko too.

“No!” I cried. I couldn’t do anything. Who knew what had been taken from them.

“Too bad you’re in for a worse fate, fish bait,” the otter ReMare said, shrill and smug.

“I’ll show you fish bait!” I shot back, and kicked the massive leg that I was stuck to. The otter laughed, so I kicked him again with the other foot. This accomplished nothing besides getting both legs stuck in the monster’s leg as well. As you might be able to tell, I am the smartest.

And I was well and truly screwed. So, in a fit of desperation, I smashed my head against the huge turtle leg too.

I expected for my vision to go black with the ReMare’s ink. Instead, an orangish brown light flashed in my eyes, and I was in a hospital. There was a long line of rooms. Everything was tinted a sort of sepia. A patient walked with the assistance of a nurse, distressed because his mother hadn’t visited. The man had to be ninety. There was no way his mother was still alive. A middle aged woman was talking to a young blond doctor, who seemed vaguely familiar.

“Meiaki?” I said at the same time the woman said “Meiaki-sensei.”

“Yes, Tanaka-san?” Akito asked.

“Is there anything else we can do?” the woman asked.

“I’m afraid not. Your son is young, so he might respond to trial medicines,” Something about the way he said trial medicines sounded dubious. His hand slipped to something about the size of a smart phone in his lab coat pocket. It looked like the Time Driver, but it had a burnt umber frame and a complicated brown, indigo and silver stamp on the face side. He dropped his hand, and continued, “but aside from that, all we can do is make sure he’s comfortable,” Akito said.

“It’s not right that someone so young is losing his memories. It’s not fair!” The woman cried.

“I know it’s not. But we will do everything we can to help him. Oara has the best hospital in the world for memory loss. We’ve had a forty percent success rate with cases like this so far, over the national average of three percent. And I won’t stop until it’s at one hundred percent,” Akito said. His words were like fire, and I could see the woman take comfort in them.

“Akito, wow,” I said. He glanced over at me. “You make a pretty cool doctor.” Akito walked towards me. “Oh, um…” But he passed right through me before I could move. Oh. A memory? I suppose that made sense. He wasn’t a doctor anymore. But the most important question was: Why was I seeing his memories? What happened to the fight? Meiko and Rou were lying on the ground by the river. I had to get back to them.

I started running. The hallway seemed to go on forever. Suddenly there were people in front of me again. An old man and a nurse. A middle aged woman talking to a young blond doctor.

“Meiaki-sensei.”

“Yes, Tanaka-san?” Akito asked.

“Is there anything else we can do?” the woman asked.

I turned and tried to run away from the reoccurring scene. It just kept happening.

The roar of a motorcycle engine stopped me in my tracks. That was different. Where was it coming from? I heard it again. To the left. I jogged after it, and the hospital scene fell away. The burnt umber glow was replaced with increasing darkness. My movements slowed until I felt like I was stuck again. Just one more step… And my hand grasped something in the darkness.

I felt a hand grip my own, and it yanked me forwards. The inky darkness clung to me, trying to pull me back in. But the hand was stronger. The jet goop fell away in sticky strands and I caught a glimpse of the blue sky.

The hand pulled me into a sidecar and I caught a glimpse of my rescuer. He had brown armor with silver trim and indigo embroidery. His helmet had large horns that reminded me of a beetle or a bull. And across one shoulder he had an indigo and silver cape over one shoulder.

“Return them to me! They are my toys you see!” The otter monster shouted.

The other rider made a rude gesture at the ReMare, which sent the thing into a babbling rage of nonsense rhymes. It sounded like he wanted us to do something inappropriate with a water fowl.

“Meiko? Rou?” I asked.

The rider glanced down at me, “I got them first. Don’t worry.”

“Good.” I swiped my hand across the Time Driver and removed the Memoka.

“Erase. Bye Bye.” The belt chimed as my armor disappeared in a swirl of light.

 


	5. Falling

My rescuer left me at a TomoMart. He pulled up, made a swiping gesture on my Pair Driver, which disconnected it from his motorcycle. “Go home and get some rest,” he said, helping me out of the Synchrocycle side car.

“What about the others?” I asked. “And who you? I really should thank you.”

“I took the others someplace safe,” he paused, “I don’t know. Fall. It doesn’t matter. Don’t thank me.” He shrugged, before driving off.

“Someplace safe,” I repeated. Akito had said he had been Autumn before. Fall sounded like the same thing. I wondered if it was him, and he had taken them back to the lab. Could have done me the same favor, if that was the case, the jerk. I sighed and tapped the screen of the Pair Driver. It transformed back into its motorcycle form.

I drove to Kamitori Arcade, and entered the restaurant below the lab. A bell rang. The lights were off, and chairs were set on the tables. “Meiaki-san?” I called out. “Are you here?”

From the kitchen I heard some rattling. Akito shuffled out. He looked exhausted. His hair was half out of its ponytail, and his clothes were rumpled. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, good. You’re back. Are Meiko and Rou here?” I said.

“What? I dunno. The last I saw Meiko was when you two ran off following an alarm. And Jiro’s been up in his lab since you left, although he probably went after the alarm too. What’s up?” Akito said, smoothing his clothes.

“So… You didn't save us?” I asked.

“Like I could save anyone,” he rolled his eyes and continued “I finished shopping and went home to take a nap.”

“You’re not Fall?” I asked.

“You mean Autumn? No. Not anymore,” he shook his head. “What happened?”

“There was this massive ReMare and I tried to punch him but I got stuck. A lot,” I said. That had probably been the stupidest thing I’ve ever done. Akito was just standing there, arms crossed, judging me. I knew he was. I could see the “I told you so” in his eyes. The sheer stupidity of my actions had me spilling out the rest of the story quickly. “He got a hold of Rou and Meiko. And then I may have smashed my head into the monster’s leg, and I saw you in a hospital, and then I was trapped in that memory, but a motorcycle guided me out, and then another guy with armor like mine showed up.” I paused for a breath.

“Like yours?” Akito asked, frowning.

“Well, not exactly? His was brown, and he had a short little cape over one shoulder. Like a matador or something. And BIG horns.” I waved my hands near my head to give an estimated size and shape of the horns.

He made a soft thinking noise.

“And he said he had taken Rou and Meiko to someplace safe, and he said he was Fall,” I said.

He sighed and uncrossed his arms. “I have no idea. It sounds like Autumn. But I didn’t transform. I gave the driver back to Jiro,” he said at length. “He could have given it to someone else, I guess, but I thought he'd tell me if he did... And I'm not sure that would even work.”

“Can I go up into Rou’s lab? Maybe he has notes or something about who he gave it to,” I asked.

“He probably wouldn’t like it if you go digging through his shit, but knock yourself out,” Akito said, gesturing over to the elevator.

“Thanks!” I said, and took the tiny cage-like elevator upstairs. Rou’s room looked even more of a disaster zone than usual. Papers were flung on the floor, and there were a few boxes set on the table. One of them was small, tipped over on its side, and looked a bit like a treasure chest. Spilling out of that was something that was burnt umber colored. I flipped it over. Another driver. There was a complicated sigil on the face of the driver in indigo, brown, and silver. Now that I had a closer look, it seemed a bit like a stamp pad, rather than a white board like mine.

It also looked just like the one Akito had in the memory. But if it was here, then the other rider couldn’t have been using it. A copycat? I wasn’t sure. But thinking about the memory of the hospital made me wonder if maybe that was what Fall had meant when he had said someplace safe. If the otter turtle abomination had taken enough of their memories, a hospital specializing in memory loss might be the best place for them.

I headed back to the elevator, but on the table there was something that gave me pause. There was a pink marker. It looked just like the colorless Memoka I already used. I hesitated. If it was something Year could use to help Rou, then I don’t think he’d mind if I took it.

So I did.

Downstairs, I paused to let Akito know the driver was still up there, so it wasn’t someone else using it.

“Jiro must have made a second one. The drivers don’t really work for more than one person,” he said, shrugging. “It’s not really any of my business.”

I frowned at him, suspicious, but his expression was totally bland and disinterested.

I told him I was going to go home.

“I could make you something to eat first, if you want?” He asked. I shook my head no, despite feeling like my stomach was going to eat me from the inside out. He shrugged. “Take care then. Let me know if you find them. Jiro has some explaining to do.”

I didn’t go home. I went straight to the city hospital. The place was pretty average. The building and furniture were old and a bit dingy, but the staff greeted me cheerfully.

“Can I help you?” The nurse asked.

“Um, yes. I’d like to know where the Memory Center is,” I said.

Her smile faltered, “Please don’t joke about that. It burned down two years ago.”

“What? I didn’t hear about a fire,” I said, alarmed.

Her expression darkened further, “I know. It wasn’t really covered by the local media.”

I cringed under her glare, suddenly feeling guilty. I was local media. “That’s… I have to hear about it or I can’t report it, so um…I’m very sorry. I do not know how that slipped by me. Please. Could you tell me where it used to be? So that I can be a better reporter in the future.”

She seemed a bit mollified by that. “It was down by the river. They’ve built a warehouse over it now.”

The river again. I shuddered. “Alright, thank you,” I said.

This time, I did go home, mostly to eat and clear my mind. A fire. I knew I would have reported something like that. Anything out of the ordinary happening was so rare that I would have jumped at the story. But either I hadn’t because I had totally forgotten the fire, or I had and everyone had forgotten the report, including myself.

Either option seemed incredibly unacceptable. After I finished eating, I texted both Rou and Meiko, asking them to tell me where they were. I knocked next door, my usual little rhythm of knocks, but no one answered. He hadn’t brought them there either. The people who knew where Meiko lived were not people who I suspected of being Fall. I didn't think he would know it, but it was hard to tell what anyone should know anymore.

The hospital was my only other lead. I drove back to the river. It was a good thing I didn’t have to go back to the park. It looked miserable. The trees looked withered, and the grass was brown. Even from the road, it stank, even worse than before. I drove parallel to the river, keeping an eye out for a warehouse.

I drove up, and crossed the bridge to go back down the river. I didn’t see anything that resembled a warehouse.

But there was a sign for a hospital. It was dirty and half blocked by long grass. I brushed some of the grass aside. “Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital,” it said.

“Meiaki,” I said. I pulled out my phone and called him. “Hey, Meiaki.”

“Hello! And what do I owe for the pleasure of your call?” he asked, “Did you find Jiro?”

“Maybe. Do you know a Meiaki Togo?” I asked.

“Just because my name is Meiaki, doesn’t mean I know every single Meiaki, Kimura-san,” he said, his voice light and scolding.

“It’s the name of a hospital. You did say you were a doctor,” I said.

“Yeah, years ago. It might be new,” he said.

“It’s definitely not. The nurse at the City Hospital said it burned down two years ago and no one reported it,” I said.

“Sounds like ReMare shenanigans,” he said.

I stomped a foot, despite him not being able to see it. “Don’t say that so calmly!”

“What, should I panic? I’ve never heard of it. It doesn’t concern me. If it did, it doesn’t anymore,” he said.

“Ugh,” I made a face at the phone and hung it up without saying goodbye. I was not interested in having that argument again.

I looked up the drive near the sign. The asphalt was cracked in places and grass was growing where it shouldn’t. It looked like a scene out of a horror movie. I drove up slowly. I thought it was possible that Synchrocycle would adjust for me hitting a pothole at full speed, but I didn’t think it was a good idea to test that unless I had to.

At the top of the hill, surrounded by trees, was a large building with broken windows. “If this is the place, it’s not what I’d call safe…” I muttered. I took a deep breath and summoned my enthusiasm. “I’ve never explored a haunted hospital before! This’ll be fun.” I pushed open one of the doors. It groaned loudly, but eventually gave way.

The inside was not much better than the outside. It was dark, and things were scattered on the floor. It looked like people had just left. Some of the ripped chairs in the waiting area had purses sitting on them casually. Everything was filthy though. Another door was ajar, held open with a fallen folding chair. I stepped over it carefully. There was a long hallway. It looked the same as the one from the memory. I walked down, peering into rooms as I walked past. They looked like examination rooms.

One of the room’s nameplates said “Dr. Meiaki.”

“Meiaki again,” I said, making a face, but I pushed the door open. There was a desk with a computer and a few chairs. I walked around the desk to see if I could find anything.

A sharp crack nearly had me out of my skin. I jumped and spun around, one hand pulling out the Time Driver.

There was nothing there. My heart was racing. “Hello?” I called out softly. Nothing responded.

I looked down. I had stepped on a picture frame and broken the glass. “Oh, was that you?” I asked it. I gingerly picked it up.

Akito was there, wearing a suit, his arm slung around a younger boy's shoulder. The boy had spiked hair and was wearing a school uniform. The boy was waving a diploma above his head. A beautiful middle aged woman wearing a kimono smiled with amused tolerance, and balding man in a suit was off to the side, looking very stern. He looked oddly familiar, although I chalked it up to him looking like every rich salary man. I took the picture carefully out of the frame and pocketed it. I looked around for anything else that looked like a personal belonging, but there was nothing.

The second floor was much harder to move around in. There were big heavy doors with electronic locks. Without electricity, I didn’t see a way through. The sign said patient ward. I assumed it was to keep people with no memories from just up and wandering off because they couldn’t remember where they were.

I wasn’t going to get much farther this way. I punched one of the doors in frustration. The metal clanged loudly. “Ouch,” I muttered, shaking the hand out. That was going to bruise.

“Well, that was silly, wasn’t it butterfly?” A soft voice said from behind me.

“AGHHHH!” I screamed, and spun around, pressing my back up against the wall.

A very pretty lady was sitting there, casually, on a torn and dirty waiting room bench like it was a throne. She had a floofy dress that was a rainbow of pastels. It looked like something an idol would wear on stage. Her sleek brown hair hung in two curling pigtails. I was certain she was some kind of ghost, but she almost seemed more real than the chair she sat on. More real than the entire building. “What a surprise!” she said, one hand covering her mouth. Her dark eyes glittered.

“You, you surprised me!” I said, sliding along the door to try and get back to the stairs.

“This is getting boring, don’t you think? There’s nothing here but dirt and broken hospital equipment,” she said, brushing imaginary dirt off her dress. “Your friends are at his house, you know.”

“Whose house? Who are you?” I demanded, “Why are you here? What do you know?”

“Think carefully, because I’m only going to answer one of those questions,” she said. So far she hadn’t made a move to stand up. The stairs were still ten feet away.

“Whose house, then,” I said, not bothering to think it through any farther. I needed to know where my friends were.

“Good question! I think you already know, though,” she said, clapping her hands politely. Mockingly? I wasn’t sure which.

“Meiaki,” I said, putting a hand over the picture in my pocket.

“Pin Pon! That’s correct! Now, don’t you wish you had used your question on something else?” She tilted her head and smiled.

“Who are you?” I amended, moving closer to the door.

“Buu-buu! That’s cheating! I’ll have to punish you for that later. Bye bye!” She waved at me as I got to the door. I didn’t hesitate. I ran down the stairs. I didn’t look back until I got to my bike. She was nowhere in sight. My heart was still racing. Haunted hospital indeed. I didn’t calm down until I got on the road. Except now instead of being terrified, I was edging towards angry.

I stormed into his restaurant.

“Kimura-san, you’re back? What’s going on?” Akito asked, as I opened up doors aggressively throughout the restaurant. That was a linen closet. That was a stock room.

“Where are they?” I demanded.

“Who?” When I glared at him he made a guess, “Rou and your friend? I don’t know. I thought you were looking for them?”

“I was told they’re at your house.”

He frowned. “I don’t own a house, I live in the restaurant. You’ve slept in my bed. Who told you that?”

“I don’t know. She wouldn’t tell me her name. And you lied. You do too know a Meiaki Togo.” I thrust the picture in his face. “You were a doctor at the Meiaki Togo Memorial Center for memory problems! Togo is your brother, isn’t he? You were the one who saved me earlier! Tell me where they are!”

He stared at it, and then very gently pulled my arm down. “Kimura-san. I understand you are worried about your friends. I am too. But it doesn’t matter how much evidence you throw in my face. Those memories are gone. I can’t save anyone because I’m not that person. I don’t know where they are. I’m sorry.”

I watched him, staring at his face for any sign of a lie. There was none.

He waited for me to calm down before continuing. “Tell me what she said.”

“She said, ’They’re at his house, you know?’ And I asked who, and she said, ‘I think you already know.' And I said Meiaki. And she said that that was right,” I said.

“Damn girl, I already told you that I’m not the only Meiaki in the world,” he sighed.

“Then which one is it?” I demanded.

“I have no idea,” he said. I scowled at him and he shook his head, “I know how this looks, kiddo. I'm worried about Rou, too. But I’m drawing a blank and I can’t color it in.”

“Then what can I do?” I sighed, slumping down into a chair.

“Origami?” He shrugged.

“That’s not helpful at,” I started, and then remembered the origami flowers that Rou had made. “Wait! I got it! The flowers!”

“Close. Those will only sense if a ReMare eats them. What you need is a fox.”

“A fox?” I repeated.

“Can you make one? They’re good at finding things,” he explained.

“I can. I don’t have any paper though,” I said.

“Alright. Not just any will do. Let me see if I can find some of his paper,” he said, and disappeared upstairs. He came back later with pink paper. “It's not really the right color for a fox, but it's better to use a color associated with who we're trying to find. Pink is Rou's color.”

“It doesn't have to be the right color for origami,” I said. When I was little I had went through entire boxes of origami paper without really caring what color I made things. I had made blue dogs an purple pumpkins. I took the paper and carefully folded it into a little fox head.

“Write the kanji for sakura on it, so it’ll target Rou,” he said, and I nodded and carefully wrote it with the colorless Memoka. “Good. It should work with your Pair Driver.”

“You sure know a lot for someone who doesn’t know anything,” I grumbled.

“Memories are tricky,” he shrugged, “And they don’t have to take everything to wreck a person. Even one small key memory is enough. Although I know it’s more than one in my case. Rou has tried to tell me everything. It doesn’t help.”

“It helped Meiko,” I said, defensively.

He laughed. “Have you been listening to the radio? She likes Year. She’s willing to try to believe you to try and get close to a hero.”

“I… Our friendship is strong, that’s all!” I said.

“No sorry, she’s just hella gay for justice,” he said.

I stared at him, mouth open. “What.”

“You heard me. You really should hurry. I don’t think it’s great that some strange lady in an abandoned hospital knows where your injured friends are.” He shrugged, and added, “But that’s just me.”

“Right,” I said, and headed out. I placed the origami on my Pair Driver. It disappeared and a tiny fox icon appeared on a GPS screen. A small dotted pink line marked the way to it. I followed it. It led me to an area of town that was unfamiliar to me. It was mostly unusually large houses, with little gardens. Everything was gleaming and new. The whole neighborhood felt way out of my pay grade.

At the end of the pink line, the fox icon flashed repeatedly. I stopped. It was indicating a really massive house. It looked like it had three floors. I walked up to the gate and pressed the intercom underneath the small sign that said Meiaki residence. I made a face. Meiaki again. There was a soft dinging noise.

“Who is it?” A friendly female voice asked.

I took a deep breath and put on my best manners. “Sorry for the intrusion. I’m Kimura Mei. Meiaki-san told me my friends were here.” It was sort of a lie, but he had told me how to get here.

“Oh! Just a moment please,” There was a small ping and the gates swung open automatically. “Come on in!” she said.

I walked up the path, arms held stiffly at my sides. I wasn't sure what to expect. As I reached the front door, it swung open. A petite, older woman, who looked like the woman in the picture of Akito, held the door open.

“Come on in, your friends are resting upstairs. Fall said you might come check on them.” She said, gesturing for me to come in.

“Excuse me,” I said, apologizing for entering her house. I took off my shoes at the entrance way and followed her to a tatami room. She had already set out a small tray with a glass of cold tea. “You know Fall?”

“Oh yes. It’s sort of complicated, but my sweet boy Akkun doesn’t remember us. He had some sort of accident as Autumn. But sometimes he transforms into Fall anyway, and visits us, though. But he does it without remembering. Like he’s sleepwalking,” she said, still smiling. It sounded like she was talking about something very casual, but something she was proud of. Like her baby had just taken his first steps, or brought home a particularly lovely macaroni art work. “It doesn’t happen very often, but that’s our Fall.”

“That sounds… really difficult,” I said, taken aback that she knew about Fall or Autumn at all.

“Oh, it could be worse. He’s alive and that’s what’s important. Besides, I’m thinking you might help him.” Her sense of ease at the whole situation felt very unnerving.

“Me? I’m very sorry, ma’am, but you don’t even know me. What makes you say that?” I asked.

“You came for your friends, didn’t you? He told you how to find us, didn’t he? He trusts you,” she said, and pushed a plate of cake at me, “Please, eat.”

Akito being Fall didn't surprise me at all, but I was reeling from her cheerful politeness. “I… It looks delicious but I’m not hungry. Could I see my friends?” I asked.

“Oh, yes! Of course. I’ll show you,” she said, hopping up from sitting on the floor, and showing me up the stairs. “Please don’t get your hopes up too high. Whatever got them was very strong.”

“Yes,” I said, my heart sinking into my gut. She gave my shoulder a sympathetic pat, before opening a door. “Do you know about the ReMares?”

“Oh! That’s the thing Meiko was talking about on the radio, wasn’t it? Monsters? Are those the same things Akkun fights? I’ve never seen one, but Akkun used to tell us about them all the time. I think he wanted to save someone important? It’s hard to tell.”

“It sounds like the same thing,” I said. “Do you know if he ever did?”

“He hasn’t really spoken to us for two years. Except for as Fall, but as I said, that’s pretty rare, and he’s usually pretty confused. Your friends are in here,” she said.

Inside, there were two twin beds. Rou was sitting up on one and muttering. Meiko was asleep on the other.

“Oh, dear. Sweetheart, you really should rest,” she said, fluttering over to him.

He gave her a blank look, but allowed her to guide him back into bed.

“Rou! Are you alright? Is Meiko okay?” I asked.

“Meiko? Rou? What are you talking about? Who are you?” He mumbled.

“You don’t remember?” I asked. I felt an opening gulf beneath me. He didn’t know who I was. Meiko probably didn’t know either. “I’m Mei!”

“No, no, I don’t remember…Anything? Who am I? Where am I?” He sat back up, looking alarmed, and tried to get out of bed.

“No, stay here!” the older woman said, gently but firmly guiding him back down. He looked puzzled but did as he was told. “Please, Kimura-san. Let’s go back into the other room.” With the same gentle insistence she guided me back down the stairs. I moved automatically. She sat me down in front of the cake again. “Eat.”

I poked at it with the fork, “Is Meiko like that too?” I asked.

“The girl?” she asked. I nodded, “Yes, probably. She hasn’t woken up yet. They may be able to function a little better with help, but I think they don’t remember how to do very much. Rou-kun can't even use a fork.” She sighed.

“You know him?” I asked. Rou had said that no one remembered his existence.

“Oh, I just met him. Fall kept saying,” She deepened her voice slightly to show that she was quoting him, “Take Rou! Keep him safe!” She smiled sadly, “He was so worried about Rou-kun, poor thing. Not the type of person I thought I'd see my boy with, but whatever makes him happy. I just wish he remembered us so he could tell us these things straightforwardly.”

“Oh,” I said, most of her words flying over my head. The enormity of the task ahead of me was looming, and all I really wanted to do was to curl up and sleep until this nightmare was over.

“Eat. You’ll feel better,” she insisted again.

“I doubt it,” I said, but I took a bite of the cake anyway. And another. “It’s good…” I felt tears well up in my eyes, and I rubbed them away. “Thanks.”

“Of course it is! I taught Akkun everything I know.” she beamed.

And, like it or not, I did feel a little better. I finished off the cake and drank the tea. I gathered up my manners and my courage and thanked her again more formally. “Thank you, Meiaki-san. I am in your debt.” I stood up, and bowed towards her. “Please take care of my friends. I’m counting on you.”

“Of course. Don't mention it.” She waved her hand as if I had just thanked her for a cup of sugar and not the life of my friends. “Are you going now?” she asked, “So soon?”

“Yes. I’ve got to go pick a fight,” I said.

“Do your best!” she said, as if I was about to take an entrance exam to a prestigious high school, and not about to go get my butt kicked by a rhyming otter turtle abomination.

I nodded and showed myself out. I sent a text to Akito. “I found them. They’re safe at your mom’s house. I’m going to go get their memories back from the river. If you can help me save them, that’d be great.”

Surprisingly, my phone pinged back almost immediately.

“I can’t save anyone,” his text said.

“Liar. You saved me, Fall,” I responded. No text seemed forthcoming, so I tisked at the phone and drove back to the river park. I got off and headed towards the riverbank.

“Hey! Stink-o! I’m here to have words with you!” I shouted out at the river. Nothing happened. “Your rhymes are terrible.” The water bubbled ominously. “And you’re ugly too!” The otter turtle monster erupted from the water.

“What the heck was that for? Are you back for more?” He asked, pointing a tiny paw at me accusingly.

“Exactly,” I said. I pulled out the Time Driver and both Memokas. The colorless one hadn’t worked very well for me last time, so I uncapped the pink one. I slashed it across the Time Driver’s face, “HENSHIN!” I shouted, and placed it at my waist.

Music played, but this time it sounded like a koto playing traditional Japanese music instead of a guitar riff. The belt wrapped around me, and announced “Sakura in full bloom, come and see!” Small pink motes of light fell down on me, until everything glowed. Armor appeared. It seemed similar to the Year armor, but it was several shades of pink, rather than white and black. And my cape had drifting sakura blossoms on it instead of looking like the patterns on a butterfly wing.

“This time you’re pink? Who cares? You stink!” The otter scoffed, and stomped out of the water, rivulets streaming down the oozy black carapace.

“Prism Charge, Complete!” The belt announced.

“Eh?! Already? Great!” I said, and drew the pink Memoka. I expected a sword. I did not get a sword. Instead the Memoka wrapped around my wrist and projected a glowing sakura shape.

“PRISM SAKURA, PRISM SAKURA! GO! GO! GO!” it shouted.

I poked at the light, and it came loose. It felt a bit like a throwing star. I chucked it at the otter monster and he took an abrupt step back, yelling in pain. Immediately the glowing sakura reappeared on my wrist. “Ha! That’s good. You’re not going to trap me again!” I said, grinning fiercely behind my mask.

“That was something you did on your own, don’t give me responsibility on loan!” He snapped. “I’ll eat you, defeat you!”

“Not me! I’m living in color!” I shouted. He screeched and ran at me, surprisingly fast. I jumped to the side, throwing Prism Sakura at him as quickly as they would appear. He yelled every time one hit.

“Ha! Not so tough now, huh!” I taunted, enjoying the speed and maneuverability of this form.

Then suddenly the belt chimed “Falling down! Bye Bye!” and I hit the ground, my armor gone.

The otter turtle laughed manically. “So much for that, little rat.” He began lumbering towards me.

I hastily got out the colorless marker and swiped the Time Driver with that. White light swirled around me and it played the Year tune while saying “This is your YEAR! Let’s go! Let’s go! Yeah!”

I stood back up, but the otter turtle was already too close. He grabbed me by the cape, dangling me above the ground.

“Good-bye, butterfly,” the otter hissed, bringing me closer to his sticky body. I flailed my arms and legs wildly, trying to get out of his grasp.

There was a flash of something bronze and the otter screamed and dropped me. I scrambled back and to my feet.

The bronze rider with the large horns was standing at the top of the hill. One glaive in hand, a second embedded in the center of the otter monster’s back.

“Fall!” I shouted, “Thank you!”

He saluted me and jumped down the hill, thrusting the second glaive into the turtle’s shell. He dragged it down, catching the first glaive with his free hand on the way to the ground. They left behind two jagged golden lines in their wake. The otter screamed and turned to face Fall. Fall brought the two glaives together. They fused at the butt end of their staves and he pointed one sharp end at the Otter. “While he’s distracted!” he shouted, fending off the otter’s attack with sharp jabs and spinning blades.

I nodded. The white Memoka flashed brightly and played high energy music. “Vanishing Point!” it declared. I jumped into the air. Bright white light burned around me. I dove straight at the ReMare. This time, when I hit the inky body, it liquefied, the ink splashing to the ground in a massive puddle.

Blue and pink light shimmered away from the mess, but a large golden globe of light remained.

“Take that back to Jiro. He’ll be happy,” Fall said, tilting his head at it. “Good work, kiddo.”

“Erase, bye bye,” the Time Driver announced as I swiped my hand over it.

“Meiaki-san?” I asked tentatively.

Fall nodded and gave me a thumbs up with one hand, and slapping the face of his driver. It said “FALL OUT! BYE BYE!” before dropping the transformation.

“My friends call me Aki though,” he reminded me.

I was happy to consider him one. “Aki!” I said, grinning, “You remembered!”

“Not until you defeated it,” he said. “I was reading your text and next thing I knew, I was here, and you had already won. Thanks, kiddo. I owe you.”

“We defeated it! I couldn’t have done it without you,” I corrected him. “That thing had me like a rabbit in a snare! Ah!” My phone started ringing and I juggled it with the Time Driver to get the right one up to my ear.

“That’ll be Jiro. Say hi for me,” Aki said.

“Hello?” I said into the phone, “Are you okay? Is Meiko okay?”

“Yes, thanks to you. I don’t know how you got out of that, but good job,” Rou seemed proud. I could hear Meiko thanking Aki’s mother in the background.

“Thanks! Oh, and Aki says hello! He’s also better!” I said.

“Aki?” Rou sputtered over the phone.

“Yup! And I’m bringing a present back to the lab! See you soon!”

 

 


	6. Invisible

Akito and I went back to his shop to wait for Meiko and Rou. I wanted to go and get them from his mom's house, but it'd be a juggling act between our two motorcycles and Akito convinced me that the public transportation in that neighborhood was surprisingly good. “Besides,” he said, rubbing the back of his head, “I finally remember my mom after like, two years, and I'd rather have my first visit with her be without a peanut gallery.” I didn't argue with that, and he made both of us a cup of coffee, and we sat in his cafe, recounting the battle.

The cafe door chimed as it opened, and Rou walked in. Meiko trailed behind him, her hands clasped together in front of her back. She hesitated as she stepped into the room, glancing around. “You're back!” I shouted, jumping up from my chair. I tackle hugged Meiko, who smiled and bore it with amused tolerance, before gently pushing me away.

“I’m glad you’re okay,” she said.

“Me too,” I said.

“What were you going to give me?” Rou demanded, like a child who had been promised a souvenir. I grinned and handed over the golden globe of light to him. He made a tisking noise and immediately disappeared towards the elevator. My face fell.

“He’s happy, I promise,” Aki said, laughing at my chagrined expression.

“I guess,” I said, wrinkling my nose. I cupped my hands to my face and shouted towards the kitchen. “I'm fine! Thanks for asking!”

“Busy!” Rou shouted back.

I shook my head.

“Do you have any new injuries? I’ll take care of it, if you want,” Aki offered.

I took stock of my various aches and pains. Nothing seemed any worse for wear than it would after a vigorous work out. “I think I’m actually okay this time! I just thought he'd want to know all about the fight...”

“He will. He just has a one track mind sometimes,” Akito said.

I felt a tug at my shirt sleeve. “I want to hear all about it,” Meiko said quietly, staring up at me intensely.

I felt a tidal wave of joy wash over me. “Of course!” I launched into the story, in full theatrical mode. Akito joined in pretending to stab the air with an imaginary glaive. Meiko was a delightful audience, gasping at the right times and watching us intently.

“You were very brave,” Meiko said after we finished, smiling softly at me.

I felt like I had just gotten off the tea cup ride at an amusement park. Giddy and lightheaded. “Ha... You know... Just living in color.” I grinned and flashed my pose.

“For Justice,” Akito added in a sing song voice, posing next to me. Reflexively, I crouched low and kicked his ankle out from under him. Akito stumbled and swore, but quickly righted himself. “What was that for?” he demanded.

In the moment, I wasn't entirely sure why I did it, but I think it was because the last time he had said “For Justice” it had been preceded by “She's hella gay for” and was afraid Meiko would somehow suss out his meaning, and be mortified. She wasn't the outgoing type, who would chatter about her crushes. Not even with me, her best friend. She says it's because I'm kind of dense at that sort of thing, which can't be right. Here I was, being sensitive and protecting her feelings from Akito's dumb teasing! Meiko glanced at me in confusion, so it seemed she hadn't somehow figured out the rest of the phrase. I scrambled for a lie. “For justice, my butt. You've been complaining about how it's not your problem since I met you.”

“Memories are tricky. I know why I was fighting now.” He leaned down and rubbed his ankle. “In any case, that reminds me, let me know when you’re free. We should do some training. I’m rusty and you’re green, so we should be able to sharpen each other up,” Aki said, with a grin that said he'd get his revenge.

“Sure! It sounds like fun!” I said, giving him the same challenging smile.

And that was how I locked myself into weeks of grueling training with Aki. I was very tired of getting hit after the first week. Every time Rou sent us off to fight blots was a faint spot of excitement, that soured quickly. None of the blots had the colored glow that made them full-fledged intelligent ReMares, and they were easily dispatched.

Still, things were quiet, and it made me uneasy. Sharky and Anubis didn't show up, and nothing triggered any of the missing alarms.

Towards the end of the month, Meiko and I were just finishing with work for the day. “You’re going to practice with Meiaki-san later, correct?” she asked as she slung the strap of her purse over her shoulder.

“Yeah, after we get something to eat. What sounds good? I was thinking yakiniku.”

“Is it always meat with you?” she asked. I shrugged. Protein was important when being so physically active. And meat was delicious. “I was actually thinking it would be nice to eat at Meiaki-san’s restaurant. You’re there all the time, but I’ve never eaten there,” Meiko said quietly.

“You’ll like it! Aki is really,” I paused as I struggled with my outside shoes, “He's a good cook.”

“I would also like to stay to watch you train,” Meiko said, also suddenly interested in her own shoes, although they were already on her feet.

“I guess? It’s not that exciting,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck. She didn’t say anything, she just continued staring down at her feet. Ah well. Who was I to say no to her? I shrugged. “ Sure. Let’s go.”

A girl that I didn't recognize greeted us when we entered Momiji, and sat us at a table. The girl handed us menus and walked off to get glasses of water for us.

I glanced around. The restaurant seemed different with people in it. There was a young man studying as he ate sitting in the corner, and an older couple chatting over tea. The table we sat at had leaves engraved around the boarder, and bright red place mats. As much as he scowled about Rou commenting on his name, Aki did play up the autumn theme. His cafe was even named after a type of maple tree famous for it’s fall colors. Aki came out of the kitchen and pretended to do a double take. “Hello, ladies! How can I help you? Kako-san, I'll take care of these two.” The girl nodded, and went back to to clearing tables.

“We’re gonna eat here before our training session. And Meiko wants to watch us, if that's okay with you,” I said. She nodded distractedly as she read the menu.

“Ah, she does, does she? I suppose I’ve been on worse dates,” Aki said, winking at Meiko who glanced up from her menu just to stare him down. “Welp! Let’s get your order then.”

“I want the curry,” I said. I hadn’t even looked at the menu. It was what I always got.

“Me too,” Meiko said, folding her menu and handing it back.

“Alright, two curries. I’ll get those right out,” Aki gave a flourishing bow before retreating back to the kitchen.

“Sorry, he’s kind of weird,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck.

“I hadn’t noticed,” Meiko said in her sort of dry way where I couldn’t tell if she was joking or not.

The door to the outside swung open, slamming against the bell that alerted the staff that there were new customers. Kako started to greet the new person, but stopped when she saw that it was Rou carrying an armload of equipment, which he promptly dumped on our table.

“Hi, Rou,” I said. “What’s all this?”

“I’ve been looking all over for something and I can’t find it. So I have to start all over! It’s bullshit,” he said, scowling as he searched through a box.

“What is it?” Meiko asked, “Maybe we could help.”

“I doubt it. I’ve been working on it for ages and now it’s gone.” He raised his hands in defeat. “Probably because some dumb amnesiac’s subconscious made him make a mess of my lab.”

“To be fair, it was already a mess,” Aki said from the door to the kitchen. Rou shot him a glare. “I offered to help you tidy up.”

“No, I have a system!” Rou snapped.

Aki rolled his eyes. “I’m not the only one who was looking for the Autumn Driver though. Meiki went up there too.”

“What? You did?” Rou asked, redirecting his irritation towards me.

“Yeah,” I said, suddenly nervous.

“Did you see a pink Memoka?” Rou demanded.

I cringed. I had totally forgotten about taking that by the time he had asked about the fight. “Yesss?” I took it out of my pocket and held it out. “Sorry?”

Rou stared at it for a long moment, and then at me, “You sticky fingered piece of shit!” He grabbed at the front of my vest and dragged me to standing. I held my hands up in a gesture of peace.

“Jiro-chan, don’t get too angry,” Aki said, slinging an arm around Rou’s shoulders, gently separating us. “She would have gotten whomped by the Abomination if she hadn’t taken it. It was a good test run, wasn’t it?”

“I’ll have to reanalyze the data… I thought your story was odd…” Rou muttered. “Why the hell did you let her up in the lab by herself?”

“Because I didn’t care!” Aki said in a sing song voice, dancing away to the kitchen. He stuck his head back out to add, “Still don’t.”

“Jerk,” Rou sighed, “Give me the Time Driver. I’ll make sure it worked together properly. Did you have any problems with it?”

“It timed out on its own pretty fast,” I said, handing over my equipment.

“It does that. Which you would have known, if you had waited until I gave it to you,” he said, hooking up the Time Driver to his equipment. “It’s fast and strong, but it doesn’t last long.”

“Like sakura blossoms,” Meiko said, examining some of the equipment.

“Exactly,” Rou said, nodding approvingly.

“I guess that makes sense,” I said, although I didn't like it..

“Clear the table, Jiro-chan. They’re customers,” Aki said, as he swept out of the kitchen with two plates of food.

“We can just eat over here,” I said, moving to another table.

“I want to look at this some more, if that’s alright with Meiji-san,” Meiko said quietly.

“Meiji?” Aki and I said at the same time.

“You don’t need to be so formal. Go on, you can call him Jiro-chan,” Aki said.

“That’s his family name?” I said, at the same it time. “I had forgotten. Rou suits him better.”

“Honestly both of you could stand to be a little more respectful,” Rou grumbled. “Go ahead. I don’t expect you to understand it. It’s all custom made.”

“Is that so?” Meiko said in her normal calm tone. She proceeded to explain the equipment to Rou, who stared at her in shock, but quickly joined in, giving a more detailed explanation for things that she missed or why he did something a certain way.

Aki caught my gaze, shrugged, and put the curry down in front of me. “Nerds,” he whispered, despairingly.

“Meiko’s good with computers and machines. And she’s really smart,” I said proudly, “She’s made a lot of improvements on the radio equipment too.”

“So what you’re saying is that we’ve created a monster,” Aki said, plopping into the seat across from me. I shrugged and started eating.

“Do you think you could help me with something up in the lab? The light that Meiki brought back has been giving me trouble…” Rou said.

Meiko nodded, “Of course.”

They both stood up. Rou gathered up the equipment again, pausing only to leave the Memokas and Time Driver on the table next to me. “We’ll be back,” Rou said. Meiko smiled and waved slightly, before they both left the restaurant.

“What just happened?” I said, feeling lost and confused. Meiko just went with him instead of staying with me? She didn’t even bother to say anything to me.

“Our monster returns to its natural habitat,” Aki said, jabbing a spoon toward the lab upstairs before using it to take a bite of the curry he had made for Meiko.

“Nn…” I picked up the Time Driver and clutched it tightly. I suddenly didn't want to sit around waiting for them to come back. “How about we go look for Sharky today?” I said, faking a cheerful voice, while starting out the door.

“Jealous?” I froze in the doorway. Aki was silent for a long moment, waiting for me to answer. When I didn’t, he added, “yeah, alright. We can go.”

“You’re not going to say I should just make new memories?” I asked.

He gave me a puzzled look. “Because you're jealous she wanted to hang out with Jiro?“

“No... I don't know.”

He stared off into space, unusually solemn for him. “If I had been stronger, my brother would still be alive. I don't want anyone's lives to be torn apart. Not by ReMares.”

“But it's fine if it's not because of ReMares?” I asked.

“It's a little more fair when it's ordinary people butting heads or growing apart,” Akito said, shrugging. “But when a magical monster is causing the problems, it's a lot harder to fix things.”

“Yeah,” I said, feeling the weight of our task on me.

“If it makes you feel any better, I do think she likes you, even if she doesn't remember being friends. I was only half joking before,” Akito said, walking up to me and putting his hand on my shoulder. “I don't think there's anything to worry about.”

“You might be right, but,” I struggled, “that worries me too?”

“Huh?”

“She likes Year.” The words tasted like bitter goya melon in my mouth.

He frowned, “And not you?” I nodded. “But you are Year.”

“But if I wasn't?” I asked. He didn't answer, “I don't know.”

“Well, then, all we have to do is defeat Sharky, right?”

I nodded, determined.

Then the Time Driver started playing the alarm noise. Both Aki and I jumped. “Speak of the devil!” Aki laughed.

“It might be Sharky,” I said, gripping the Time Driver.

At the same time, I got a text from Rou, “Go ahead without us. We’ll be by shortly if you need help.” I felt a little relieved. I didn’t want them in the line of danger again after the last sakura alarm we had.

“You heard the boss. Let’s roll out!” Aki said. “Kako-san, I'll be right back!”

“Be safe,” she called back.

The alarm took us about three blocks away to another shopping arcade. “This isn’t good. There’s a lot of people around here,” I said, looking around. It wasn’t as nice as Kamitori. The walkway was narrower and the streets were mostly lined with pachinko parlors and bars.

“Yeah. Let’s get it over with quickly,” Aki said, grabbing my hand and leading the way down the street.

“What?” I said, surprised, and pulled my hand away.

“Do you want the host and hostess clubs to solicit us? We’re pretty cute, and you’re famous. We can’t rider kick regular people in the face, unfortunately,” Aki said, shrugging his shoulders. “They’ll be slightly more likely to leave us alone if we’re together.”

“You just want to hold hands,” I accused, without any bite. I took his hand back. It was smooth and strong. Like he kneaded a lot of dough.

“It’s true! You’ve caught me, the dastardly hand holding fiend!” He laughed and squeezed my hand. “But the other thing is true, too.”

“Whatever.” I didn’t really mind. I liked holding hands too. It was just odd because I was on edge for our mission. We walked the length of the arcade, politely declining fliers and ignoring people shilling their bars.

“Let’s go back. There might be something inside one of the buildings,” Aki said, and we headed back down the arcade.

“It’s the end of the world! The devils are here!” A filthy old man who was wearing many layers of clothes shouted from where he was sprawled out on the side of the arcade. Other people gave him a wide berth. “Repent, so that they might devour you quickly!”

“Poor guy,” I muttered as I followed the crowd around him.

“No, wait, kiddo.” Aki started pulling me towards the old man.

“You know that we’re the same age, right?” I objected, but I went along with him.

“Do you remember seeing this guy earlier?” Aki asked, his voice hushed.

“No? We were on the other side of the arcade,” I said, “Right?”

“The arcade is not that wide,” he said conspiratorially. Then louder, to interrupt the poor man's ranting. “Hey there, old man. What’s the deal with the devils?” Aki asked.

“They’re real! I know it! There’s one here!” The old man said, struggling to stand up.

“Shh, I know. Don’t worry. We’re here to get rid of it. Are you hurt at all?” Aki asked, letting go of my hand to help the old man. I stood there sort of awkwardly. I didn’t know what else to do. I felt guilty that I had thought it was fine to just pass on by without helping. “What’s your name?”

“Honda,” he spat out. “And of course I am! Those devils are always gnawing on my bones,” the old man said.

“Alright. Let me see what I can do. Meiki, can you go get him a burger from the McDonald’s over there?” Aki asked.

“Ah, yes!” I said, and sprang into action, glad to have something to do. I went over to the McDonald's and ordered several cheeseburgers and a large order of French fries. As soon as I turned away with the bag of food, I couldn’t find where Aki had gone. I looked around, walking up and down that area of the arcade. “Aki?!” I called out. I got no answer, so I called him on my phone.

“Where did you go?” I asked when he picked up.

“I didn’t go anywhere. But I thought this would happen. Walk to your left,” Aki said.

Baffled, I did what he said, and suddenly Aki and the old man were both in front of me.

“What happened?” I asked, hanging up the phone. I handed the old man the bag of food. He was looking a little better already. I wasn’t certain what Aki had done, beyond bandage his hand and cheek. But he seemed clearer eyed than before.

“Our friend’s devil is playing tricks on us. I can get it to reveal itself,” Aki said. He got out the Autumn Driver. He wound his arm like he was dramatically playing a guitar and slapped the belt on his waist. He flipped over a plastic cover, and swiped his thumb across three panels of ink. He snapped the cover shut, and smeared his thumb across it. The complicated sigil glowed. “Henshin!” he shouted. A burnt umber light glowed in the shape of the sigil in front of him. It passed over him and his Fall Armor appeared.

“FALL OUT! It’s harvest time! GO!” The Autumn Driver announced.

“Get ready, Meiki-chan,” Aki said.

I nodded and transformed too. “This is your YEAR! Let’s Go! Let’s Go! Yeah!”

“What in damnation?!” The old man shouted, scrambling back away from us.

“Don’t worry, Honda-san. It’s still me. You can think of us as angels, if you like,” Aki said, giving the old man a thumbs up.

“Oh, I see,” Honda said, settling down, although he still watched us warily.

“Is it okay to encourage him?” I asked quietly. Aki ignored me.

“Right, Autumn Glaive!” Aki said, and one of the glaives he had used before appeared in his hand in a flash of umber light. He held it up. He was quiet for a long moment, looking very solemn. Finally he tapped the butt of the glaive on the ground and said “Abra kadabra! Show yourself!”

“Abra Ka- What?!” I said, staggering. Whatever I had expected, it hadn’t been that.

But the air shimmered with indigo sparkles, concentrating on a single area, until finally a Chameleon ReMare appeared, looking as if she was going to sneak away. She had pale blue, red, and yellow streaks swirling on her body.

“The devil!” The old man shouted, pointing.

“Uh, hi there!” she said, waving awkwardly. “Um, I’ll be just going now, okay? Bye!” The streaks started shimmering and her curled tail began to disappear.

“Not so fast!” I said, cutting off her escape.

She yelped and the black ink of her body turned a mottled green with blue spots, before turning black again. “I promise! I won’t bother him anymore!”

I hesitated. “Really?”

“Oh yes! Definitely! I’ll leave!” The chameleon ReMare nodded vigorously.

“Wait, my soft-hearted friend. We’re here on business,” Fall patted me on the shoulder, before pushing me out of the way. “So, suppose you ate an origami flower… Where did you find it?”

“Oh.” The chameleon melted down a little, and sounded very disappointed, “If it’s that you’re interested in, I gotta fight.” She sighed dramatically. “Alright let’s get it over with…” She half-heartedly put her fists up. Fall lowered his glaive, and summoned the second one.

“What? Why?” I asked, surprised, pushing Fall aside.

“Cause that’s the boss’s orders. And no offense, but I’d rather tussle with you than with one of the High ReMares,” she said, cringing away from Fall.

“Hey! Kiddo, we need to get this done with. Honda-san is counting on us,” Fall said, trying to get in front of me. I shoved him back again.

“Shh, it doesn’t feel right,” I said. “Um, miss. What’s your name?”

“Don’t talk to the Devil!” Honda shouted.

“Me? You’re asking me?” she asked, pointing at herself.

“Yeah. I’m Year, and this is Fall. We’d like to find a way to help all of us,” I said.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Don’t include me in this.” Fall waved his hands.

“Fine. I want to find a way to help all of us. It’s not fair that someone is bullying you. It’s also not fair that you’re bullying Honda-san, too. He’s afraid of you,” I said.

“I never really thought about having a name before. I guess I like the name Natasha?” Her eyes were going in different directions. One was keeping a careful watch on Fall, the other was roving around, looking for an escape.

“Alright, Natasha. Do you know why the High ReMare wants you to fight us?” I asked.

“I don’t know, do I? She just gave me that delicious flower and told me I had to fight whoever came to ask about it. I didn’t expect you to come so soon, y’know? Since I can disappear. She actually said if you couldn’t find me she’d give me something good,” Natasha said, fidgeting with her hands.

It sounded like the High ReMare was either testing her or us. Possibly both. “What kind of memories did you take from this man?” I asked.

“Oh, um. I haven’t really? Usually I just take the memories of anyone who sees him. That’s sort of my thing.” She shrugged.

“That’s not very kind.” I said sternly.

She shrugged again, “Is a cat kind to a mouse?”

“Are you done yet?” Fall asked, one hand on his hip.

“I don’t see why we need to fight her. If she just runs off, this guy can get some help…” I said.

“Oh no! I do need to fight you! It’s the rules,” she said, shaking her head.

“See?” Fall said.

“She’s scared! Shouldn’t we be going after the ones making them fight?”

“Nobody is making her torment an old man. Stop being so naïve,” Fall said, and shoved me aside again. “Wait… where did she go? Did you let the one that turns invisible out of sight? Damn it, kid!”

“What the heck are those two doing?”

“Are they cosplayers?”

“I think I heard about them on the radio. Some kind of Kamen riders or something.”

“Does that mean there’s a monster here?”

“No, that’s just some story they made up for the radio. It’s probably a publicity stunt.”

I waved awkwardly at the passing crowd, who had suddenly remembered they could see us.

Fall grabbed me by my cloak and dragged me back to the motorcycles. Once out of the crowd, I swatted his hand away and dropped my transformation. Aki did too. “What the hell?” he demanded, running a hand through his hair.

“Sorry,” I said, feeling more sullen than sorry.

“At least we got some information.” He sighed. “What happened? You haven't had a problem fighting the blots that keep popping up. And you were doing all kinds of wild stunts when you were fighting that weirdo otter turtle Abomination. Hell, you managed to even drag me out of retirement.”

“He wasn’t afraid. He got offended over something and decided to destroy us. And we were actually going to just let him be. Even Rou was fine with it. We thought he was just eating memories off of garbage,” I said, staring at the passing cars. “Natasha was afraid though. Sharky too. I can’t just hit someone who’s afraid. It doesn’t feel right.”

“They should be afraid of us. They've done terrible things,” Aki said, sternly. I didn't respond. I didn't know how. He made a face and turned away from me. “I’m going home.” I watched him as he drove off on his bronze motorcycle.

On some level, I knew he was right. I didn’t like that the ReMares took memories from people. But they were obviously sentient. Fighting someone who’s scared just feels like I’m the bully.

And that did not set easily with me.

I sighed and climbed on my bike. I wondered if I could find the ReMare that had given Natasha the sensor. Maybe they were still in the area. Or they had oozed back into the Under. Whatever. I was about as ready to go back and deal with Aki and Rou’s disapproval as I was ready to stick my hand in fire. Not to mention Meiko... Why hadn't she stuck around with me? Why had she ran off without even saying anything to me? It wasn't fair.

No, no. We still weren’t best friends like we were before. I couldn’t fault her for that. At least she was talking to me at all. I had to remember that. I had to ignore that jealousy squirming around in my gut.

I drove around the block, watching the people who were out and about on a sunny weekend. Everyone was off in their own little worlds, laughing and chatting with their friends, or power walking to a specific destination. I felt like I was in a bubble. I could see them, but if I reached out, I felt like everything would shatter. The loneliness sunk into my chest.

As I crossed an intersection, a massive truck started turning. “Fuck!” I swore, and gunned it. The Synchrocycle did an admirable job of translating my panicked, jerky movements into a controlled slide. I could feel the rumble and the foul air rolling off of the truck as it barely passed me. “What the heck! Learn to drive!” I shouted after it. It continued down the road, unaffected. My heart was still pounding.

Another car going the same way I was didn’t notice I was stopped and didn’t look like they saw me either. I swore again and revved my engine, getting out of the way in the nick of time. I pulled into a nearby TomoMart parking lot to calm down. I crouched down next to my bike, clutching the front of my vest. After a few minutes, it no longer felt like my heart was going to explode, but I still felt shaky. So, I went inside the TomoMart. I went straight to the junk food section and grabbed several cookies. As I was selecting them, an older woman bumped into me. I glanced at her and muttered “Excuse me,” but she just continued down the aisle. I sighed and went to check out.

The cashier was washing dishes. I sat my cookies down with an audible thunk. Still nothing. “Excuse me?” I called out. She continued washing the dishes. “Excuse me!” I repeated, louder this time.

The older lady who had bumped into me before went up to the other cash register and set down her basket. The cashier looked up, “Just a moment!” she said, before drying her hands and going over to the other register.

“What?” I said, staring. “I called you several times!”

“Would you like that heated?” The cashier asked.

“Yes, I would,” the older woman said.

They didn’t see me. The realization struck me like a hammer. Like, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m sort of famous in Oara. But to them, I might as well have been a ghost.

“Natasha,” I said sharply.

There was the sound of distant laughter. Now that the older woman was finished with her purchases, the store clerk was reorganizing a display on the counter. My annoyance grew. I had almost been in two car wrecks and I couldn’t even get a cashier to pay attention to me long enough to buy a damn cookie.

“Alright! Fine! I get it! Let’s do this!” I said, storming out of the TomoMart, leaving the cookies behind.

“Haha, you really think I’d fight you head on? I’m not dumb,” Natasha’s disembodied voice taunted me. “Your friend’s not around anymore to use his magic to force me to be visible. Thanks for arguing with him over little old me.” She dragged out the last bit as if singing.

I swung a punch in the direction of her voice. It didn’t connect. I punched again and there was nothing. Natasha laughed again. I huffed angrily, and got out my cellphone.

“What’s this? What are you doing?” She asked.

“Calling in the magic,” I muttered. I called Aki. It rang, and rang. I got his voicemail. “Hey, sorry. Could use your help.” I hung up and tried Meiko’s phone. It also kept ringing. I hung up when it got to voicemail. I didn’t have the heart to leave her one of my usual long rambling messages. It was something I really only did with her because I’m pretty certain she was the only person in the world who still listened to their voicemail. I called Rou next. Same results. “Dammit.”

“Too bad!” Natasha gloated.

“You talk much bigger now that I can’t see you,” I muttered. I went back to my bike. It seemed like it was going to be too dangerous on the road, so I removed the Pair Device, returning it to a normal bicycle. It wasn’t a terribly long walk, but I’d much rather have to drag a lightweight bicycle than a whole motorcycle. I walked it down the sidewalk, trying to stay out of the way of pedestrians.

“Where are you going?” She asked, from over one of my shoulders. I swatted the air. Nothing there.

“To the park, where there’s less people. If you want a fight, I’ll give it to you,” I said.

“Oh, now it’s personal, huh? Interesting.”

“Is it really?” I said, gritting my teeth.

“Yes, indeed. Your little friend was wrong. You’re not naïve. You’re selfish,” she laughed again, “You don’t want to fight us because you’re the same as us.” I stopped walking. A schoolgirl bumped into my bike and stumbled. She caught herself and continued walking.

“I can’t hit someone who is scared,” I snapped. “I don’t want to fight someone who is being bullied into fighting.”

“You say that, but it looks like you just don’t want to fight unless you’re the one in danger,” she said her tone surprisingly intimate. “You don’t want to put yourself in danger for someone you don’t know. You don’t even want to be Year.”

“I do,” I said, and started walking again.

“Why? You’re not saving anyone. You take power to sustain yourself. Just. Like. Us.”

“I don’t take anything from,” I started, but I realized that I had. I had taken the Time Driver, and the Memokas. It was my fault Meiko didn’t have her memories. Even Aki had seemed happy before I had dragged him out of retirement to help me. “What are you trying to do?”

She laughed again. I entered the park and dropped my bicycle. It clattered to the ground. I pulled out the Time Driver and the pink Memoka. I raised it over my head and crossed the marker over it. “HENSHIN!” I shouted, and slammed it against my waist.

The koto music played, and the belt said “Sakura in full bloom, come and see!” A flurry of pink petals of light fell around me, and I suddenly had the pink armor again.

“I am living in color! And I won’t let you hide me!” I shouted.

“What are you going to do about it? You can’t find me. You don’t have magic. Your friends aren’t coming,” Natasha said in a sing song voice. It sounded like she was in front of me.

But hitting where her voice was coming from hadn’t worked before. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, concentrating on the sounds in the park.

“Prism Charge, Complete!” The belt announced. I drew the Memoka. It wrapped around my wrist and projected a glowing sakura shape. “PRISM SAKURA, PRISM SAKURA! GO! GO! GO!” It shouted. I heard a twig crunch behind me. I spun and flung out a spray of sakura throwing stars in that direction. Many of them landed harmlessly in the ground.

One did not.

“Kya!” Natasha yelled, and appeared with a glowing pink wound on her shoulder. “That hurt!” She grabbed near the injury, holding her arm close. She backed away slowly. “Alright, alright! I’m sorry! Let’s talk this out, right? You don’t want to fight someone who’s scared, right?”

“No… You had your chance,” I said. Selfish, a voice inside me taunted. I advanced towards her, throwing more sakura throwing stars. Natasha wasn’t like Sharky. She wasn’t strong enough to meet me head to head. Natasha attempted to dodge, but she wasn’t very fast. She got hit. A lot. Her form started to disintegrate.

“No, stop! HELP!” She shouted. Her hand reached out, before her form collapsed entirely into a black puddle. A pale blue globe of light hovered above it.

Sakura timed out. “Falling down. Bye bye!” My armor disappeared. I sunk to the ground.

That was cruel. There was no way around it. I fought her because she had been annoying me. “You were right,” I said quietly.

My phone started ringing. I ignored the call. I didn’t even bother looking at who it was from. Rou, Aki, even Meiko, they all would have congratulated me if I had told them I had taken out another ReMare. I didn’t want that.

I didn’t want any of this. “I’m sorry,” I said to the glowing orb.

There was a soft sound of a single person applauding. I looked up reluctantly.

The woman from the hospital was there, in all her beautiful pastel glory. This time she was carrying a pale green parasol. “Well done, butterfly.”

“What do you want?” I said. I didn’t really care.

“Nothing from you, yet. I’m just here to retrieve this pawn,” she stooped gracefully to pick up the blue orb. I watched her. “I’ll have another task for you soon enough. Don’t worry, little butterfly. You’re doing fine.”

“I am?” I asked, stupidly.

“Yes, pet. Now. I’m afraid that’s more than enough questions for today! No more, or I’ll be cross,” she said, and patted me on the head like a puppy.

“Oh. Yes, okay.” I said, leaning into her hand. “But…”

“No. I will contact you when the time is right. Bye bye!” She turned to walk away.

I must have transformed too many times that day, because my vision slowly went black as she disappeared from view. The last thing I could remember was the feel of cool grass beneath my cheek.

 

 


	7. Doubts

I woke up with soft leather under under my cheek. A crochet blanket was draped over me, heavy and warm. The sounds of computer work tinkering and a busy street were noisy, but familiar. I didn’t bother moving, or even opening my eyes. I could tell where I was. Rou must have found me and brought me back to the lab again. Like picking up litter and bringing it back to throw away. Garbage.

The thought shocked me, but I couldn't dredge up evidence to the contrary. Well, fine. Then I was garbage. It was satisfying thought, in the same disgusting way that stepping on a bug could be.

“Is she alright? She’s been sleeping for a while.” That was Meiko's voice. Her concern made me angry. I had messed up. I didn't deserve it. I wanted to pull the blanket over my head. I didn’t though. Too much effort.

“She’s fine,” Rou said in his brisk way. “It takes a lot of energy to use the time driver. It's not the first time she has passed out after a fight.”

“I thought she hadn’t since the spider,” Meiko said.

“No. There was a fight with Sharky and Anubis too.” Rou said, “And she said she wasn't in great shape the first time she fought the Abomination.”

“Is that normal?”

“Nothing about this whole situation is normal,” Rou said, exasperated. Meiko was quiet for a long moment, and there was tension in the air. Rou relented first. “It's hard to say. I never had the problem with Akito, unless he was badly injured. I... am not entirely sure how the Time Driver works.”

“Didn't you make it?”

“Yes,” he sounded frustrated. “But, it took a lot of luck to even get it to the point where it didn't just... blow up. It can channel a lot more purified ReMare energy than Fall.” Resentment bubbled up inside. ReMare energy. Was I using them the same way they were using humans? My stomach turned. I really was the same. And Rou was keeping it secret.

“There's got to be a way to make it easier on her,” Meiko said with a soft sigh.

“I'm trying. But if you have any ideas, I value your expertise.” Rou said. “You really helped me out with that Memoka.”

“I don't have any expertise, I just like machines,” she demurred. “And I can't really help her any other way.” She sounded frustrated. Why? It's not like she actually cared about me now. “I wish I could remember her better. She’s going through a lot for me…” Meiko sighed. I pulled my arms in closer to myself. Was it for her? Was it really? Was she really worse off now? Or was it because I was lonely without our friendship? I heard the typing stop. “Are you awake, Meiki?” she asked, her tone lighter.

“Hnn,” I answered noncommittally. I felt a cool hand brush my bangs out of my face and I shuddered. I opened my eyes to see Meiko looking down at me.

“Morning, sunshine. We found you at the park. I'm sorry that we didn’t see your call sooner,” Meiko said. “What happened?”

“You wouldn’t have. It's fine,” I lied. I sat up and rubbed my face. “The chameleon followed me. Natasha. I beat her.” I didn’t want to go into more detail. It touched too close to the raw feelings that were running through my head.

“You beat her? Did you collect her light?” Rou demanded.

I shook my head slowly, feeling guilty that I failed in that too. Guilty and pleased. I couldn't use it if I didn't have it. “I passed out. If you didn't see it at the park then I don't know where it's at.”

“Damn,” Rou muttered, and returned his attention to his work.

“What’s going on?” I asked, barely caring.

“We’ve been working on a new Memoka. It actually...” the computer pinged, “just finished.” Rou said, and pulled a glittering gold Memoka out of a socket. “This is Golden. It's slower than Sakura, but the defenses will be much higher.”

“We think it’ll be strong enough to keep you safe against Anubis and Sharky,” Meiko said.

I stared at the Memoka. The otter turtle monster had dropped a gold orb. I took it. “Thanks.” I didn't mean it. I stood up. “Listen, I think I’m going to go home and rest. Call me if anything happens.”

“Wait. Take this with you. If you get stuck by yourself in a fight again, she’ll help you.” Rou handed over a purple origami spider. The spider skittered into my hand.

“Ah!” I dropped her immediately. The origami spider floated gently to the ground and landed on her feet.

“Are you okay?” Meiko asked, alarmed.

Rou raised an eyebrow at me. “It's just paper.”

I crossed my arms and squeezed them tight to my chest. “Sorry, it seemed real for second and I was surprised that it moved,” I lied, looking away. Arachne. Arachne had been a purple spider.

“You’ve seen her move before. She helped fight Sharky,” said Rou, eyebrows furrowed. “Did something happen? Are you alright?”

They were both watching me. I wanted to say that no, I wasn’t. I wanted to demand to know what they meant about the Time Driver using ReMare Energy. I wanted to throw the driver back at Rou. Meiko would never get her memories back, but I would be free. And alone. “I just woke up. I’m tired,” I said instead. Selfish.

“Alright. Let’s go home then,” Meiko said, picking up the origami spider.

“No.” It came out more sharply than I intended. They both stared at me, and then glanced at each other. “Um. I kind of want to be by myself for a while. Sorry,” I said. I couldn’t bear having her there, without her memory, trying to help me be Year. It made it feel fake.

“Alright…” Meiko said, more quietly than usual. It crushed me that she sounded disappointed, and I wavered, about to relent and ask her to come with me.

Selfish.

She offered me the spider again. I took it this time without objection, and lurched towards the stairs. The elevator would take too long, and I didn't really want to see Akito either. I waved halfheartedly from the door, not looking back.

I got home, pushed open the door, and without bothering to turn on any lights, navigated straight to my bed and flopped down on it.

Something had to change. I held the gold Memoka up to the light streaming in from my window. It glittered. I don’t know why I had taken it. No. I wanted to fight Sharky so I could get Meiko back. But… I didn’t like the thought of using ReMare’s power when the whole reason we fought them was because they were using human memories as energy. I didn’t want to fight Sharky. I didn’t like it when they cried. But the energy from using the Time Driver was exhilarating. Fighting was exhilarating. Being Year felt good.

Selfish.

I sighed. I watched the purple origami spider climb up my bed stand. “Are you Arachne? Are you mad at me for defeating you?” The spider paused, and then very deliberately knocked a pen off of my bed stand.

“That’s fair,” I said. I wallowed in my thoughts a little longer. I wasn’t getting anywhere besides more confused. I kicked my feet petulantly before sitting up. “That’s it. I’m taking a walk.”

I left my apartment. The spider scurried after me. I walked around the block. At the far side, there was a small park. It was an empty dirt field with some playground equipment tucked in one corner.

There was a young woman crying on the swing set. She was tall and muscular, so she sat sort of awkwardly in the children’s seat, but she was there. Her hair was tied back into two sleek ponytails, and she had on a dress that looked like it had fireworks printed all over it. Something about her seemed familiar. Maybe she just reminded me of myself. Hadn't I also came to the park to have a pity party?

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“NOOOO!” She sobbed loudly.

I felt like I had accidentally set off the fire alarm. I hurried over to her. “Shhh, calm down. What’s wrong? Can I help?” I asked, sitting down next to her on another swing.

“THE BAD DOGGIE SAID I CAN’T PLAY WITH MY FRIEND. SAID I DON’T KNOW WHAT A FRIEND IS. ALL HE WANTS IS FOR ME TO EAT MORE MEMORIES,” she shouted, looking up at the sky.

“The bad doggie? Sharky?” I asked, incredulously. “Is that you?” It certainly sounded like the big shark monster, but it didn’t look like them at all.

“YES. I AM SHARKY.” She hung her head and kicked off with her foot a little. Her wheels were turning for a few moments, before she abruptly spun to face me, twisting the chain of the swing in the process. “YOU’RE YEAR!!! I HAVE MISSED YOU!”

“You missed me?” I repeated, taken aback.

“YES! I MISSED YOU! FIGHTING YOU WAS FUN. EVEN IF SOMETIMES A LITTLE OUCHY,” Sharky said, and spun back around, untwisting the chains of her swing.

“Fun, huh,” I said, staring out across the playground. Was it fun?

“YOU DID NOT HAVE FUN?” Sharky demanded.

“No…. You ate a lot of memories that were important to me. I’m sorry I hurt you though,” I said. “Being Year isn’t much fun, I guess.”

“TRYING TO BE A HIGH REMARE IS NOT FUN TOO,” Sharky said, sounding as serious as she could at her ridiculously loud standard volume. Then she brightened. “MAYBE WE SHOULD BOTH STOP AND PLAY TOGETHER INSTEAD!”

“I don’t think I’d be able to play with you if I stopped being Year. You’d take all my memories,” I said, and I didn’t bother hiding the accusatory tone.

“OH.” Sharky hung her head.

“What even happened to you, Sharky? Why do you look like a human girl?” I asked.

“BECAUSE SHARKY IS STRONG! SHARKY HAS SOOOO MANY COLORS SO SHARKY CAN FIGHT ONE OF THE HIGH REMARES TO BECOME A HIGH REMARE TOO!” Sharky said, pumping a fist into the air, and then letting it drop kind of sadly, “I DON’T THINK THAT WILL BE BETTER… OH! BUT I CAN BE REGULAR SHARKY TOO. IT’S BETTER FOR FIGHTING. HUMAN GIRLS ARE CUTE BUT THEY DO NOT HAVE SO MANY TEETH.” Her grin was suddenly very toothy.

“This is true,” I said. I couldn’t help but smile a little. “So you're going to fight the High ReMares? I've heard they're pretty scary.”

“MAYBE. THEY ARE STRONG. BUT BAD DOGGIE DOESN’T WANT ME TO FIGHT THEM YET. IT’S BORING. I CAN’T PLAY WITH YOU OR WITH THEM. SO BOOORED.” Sharky kicked at the ground.

“I still don’t see why you listen to that guy,” I said.

“HE IS STRONG. AND FINDS LOTS OF GOOD MEMORIES.” Sharky said, sounding reluctant.

“But you’re doing something you don’t want to do, right?”

“IT’S COMPLICATED,” Sharky said, mimicking me.

“Isn’t that the truth,” I sighed. My Time Driver took the opportunity to start wailing about a sensor being eaten. “Hnn… I gotta go, I guess.” I stood up.

“WHY?” Sharky asked.

“Someone ate an origami flower. If I don’t show up, Rou or Aki will get on my case,” I said. I had taken Rou's way of fighting from him, so if I didn't do my duty, he'd be angry. And I had been on Aki's case for his reluctance to fight too. Backing out now just seemed hypocritical.

“EAT THEM,” Sharky suggested.

I couldn't help but laugh at her suggestion. “I could say the same to you about Anubis,” I said, “But thanks. I'm glad we could talk. Next time we meet though…”

Sharky nodded solemnly. “IT’S COMPLICATED.”

“Yeah. Sorry,” I said, and started off towards where the sensor was showing me. I got to the beach quickly enough with my Synchrocycle. It was nearly empty. April was plenty warm, but it wasn’t exactly beach season yet. There was one person sitting on a towel behind a large umbrella. I wondered if whatever ReMare was involved had eaten their memory of what season it was. I approached carefully. “Are you alright?” I asked.

“Are you going to use up your questions so quickly?” It was the pretty pastel girl from the hospital. I took a step back, surprised to see her here.

“Did... did you see a monster around here?” I asked, and she raised an eyebrow at me for the second question. “Please? It's important.”

She sighed and shook her head. “I suppose there is no helping it. Curiosity killed the cat you know.”

“I've never heard that one,” I said.

“I can tell.” She sounded annoyed but amused. “I did not see a monster. However, I have a deal to make with you,” she said, folding her hands over her knee.

“I don’t even know your name,” I said, accusingly. “Can't make a deal with a stranger.”

For a moment she looked like she was going to scold me for asking more questions, and then she realized I hadn't. I smiled at her flustered look. It made her more irritable. “Now, now. I’ve done nothing but help you, haven’t I? Don’t be so distrustful,” she said, gesturing dismissively, “But, if you must know, my name is Asuka. And we don’t have much time.” She stood up gracefully. “You want your friend’s memories back. I don’t want Sharky and Anubis to get any stronger. I will set a trap for them, for a price. I want the Time Driver, and all of the Memokas.”

“You are a ReMare,” I said.

“Yes,” she said simply. “Is that a reason to distrust me?” Her eye locked on to mine, like she could see into my soul.

I wiggled uncomfortably. “I don’t… I don’t know,” I said. After talking to Sharky, I was even more uncertain. She had seemed so… Well, it was weird that she liked me. And she had seemed almost as lost as I felt. “I’m not even sure that I want to fight Sharky. I don’t know what I want.”

She smiled and waved a hand. “You wouldn’t have to. I’d take care of it,” Asuka said. “Just participate in my trap, and you won’t have to do any more fighting again. You can live in peace with your friend.”

“I don’t know,” I said, shaking my head. “I want Meiko back but…”

“If you continue down this path, you may become a ReMare yourself,” Asuka said, “Is that what you want?” She was suddenly in my face, her eyes flashing yellow as she stared up at me.

“No!” I said, stumbling back. “Wait… That can happen?”

“The Memokas use our light. It’s the same power. Every time you use it, it becomes more and more a part of you,” Asuka stepped forward, tapping my chest where the Time Driver was hidden inside my pocket. It felt suddenly very hot. Searing white light blinded me.

“Agh!” I fell to my knees, clutching my chest.

“You already wear that light like a second skin. We can all sense it. Did Rou not tell you that the Memokas you use hold our power? What a useless ally.” She tutted and stepped away. “Just say yes, and you’ll be safe.”

“But Sharky…” I objected, clutching the Time Driver through my clothes. “She’d die.”

“Is that the only thing holding you back?” She sounded exasperated, and put her hands on her hips. I definitely thought that was a big enough of deal breaker, but she just tisked and continued, “As cute as it is that you’re worried about a ReMare’s life, you shouldn't bother. Look.” She pulled out a light blue orb of light with one hand, and snapped her fingers on the other. “Blots!” she called, her tone light, like she was calling a puppy for dinner.

Two blots oozed up out of the ground. She tossed the light blue orb at one of them. It absorbed into the amorphous inky body and glowing blue lines appeared all over it. “Combine please.” The second blot lurched into the blue one and it started taking on more of an animal shape. It looked like… A chameleon.

“Natasha?” I asked.

“Yup, it’s me,” she stretched and then sketched a bow to Asuka, “Thank you, m’lady. As ever, I totally don’t deserve it, I’m your loyal servant, I tremble in your presence. Yada, yada, yada, you know the drill.”

“Oh, I do. And so do you.” She looked back at me. “Little butterfly, your friends are almost here. I will seek your answer at another date. Don’t fail me,” Asuka said, and turned away. I heard the screech of motorcycle tires behind me.

“No, wait! I’ll do it!” I said. She turned back and grinned at me, and pointed behind me. I turned to look. It was Aki and Rou. I glanced back and Asuka was gone. Natasha was standing there with her hands behind her head, looking manifestly bored.

“Wasn't sure you'd be here. Glad I was wrong,” Aki said, as he came up and clapped a hand against my shoulder. I glanced up at him. “You seemed odd earlier.”

“Of course she made it. Don’t be dumb,” Rou said.“So, this is our ReMare. She doesn’t look very strong.”

“Must be stronger than she looks. Jiro, you said she beat the chameleon earlier,” Aki said, as he pulled out his Autumn Driver.

“I did.” I said, and stood up slowly. “But a pretty girl named Asuka was here and made her again, with some blots.”

“Asuka was here?” Rou demanded, his face pale.

“Yes... of course she was,” I said, frowning. Everything seemed kind of off.

“Of cou-” He repeated, immediately interrupting himself, “Have you seen her before? What did she want? She didn’t touch you, did she?” Rou was suddenly rushing toward me. He grabbed me by vest collar. The Time Driver burned in my pocket.

“Not… not directly? I’m fine, calm down,” I said, pushing him away. I stared at him for a long moment, and my gaze hardened. “You. You didn’t tell me that the Memokas were made with ReMare light. You didn’t tell me that I’m going to become one of them!”

He stumbled back, staring at me. “Aki, take care of the ReMare. I’ve got to…”

“On it!” Aki had already transformed into Fall. Natasha shrugged and tackled him. They locked into combat.

“You’ve got to what?! Keep more secrets from me?! Why do all of the ReMares know you?” I shouted, advancing on him. Without really thinking about it, I had drawn out the Time Driver, and swiped the white Memoka across it. “Henshin,” I said coldly, and put it against my waist.

“This is your YEAR! Let’s go! Let’s go! Yeah!” The belt chimed, and there was a swirl of white light. I continued to advance on him. He stumbled into the surf. Water lapped the bottom of my boots.

“Meiki, stop, this isn’t like you,” Rou said, hands outstretched.

“How do you know?! How do any of us know? What if I’m not even Mei? How am I supposed to trust anything?!” My voice faltered. “I just want to go back,” I said, slouching down, staring at my own hands. I clenched them, watching the black lines stretch and bend on the stark white armor. “I want to go back to the way things were.”

“I want to protect everyone’s precious memories!” Rou shouted. I flinched and looked up at him. His expression gentled, but his hands remained outstretched, like he was trying to calm down a bucking horse. “Meiko and I thought you were kind of… odd earlier. I should have known a powerful ReMare was involved. We know you.”

He reached for me slowly, and I shook my head, leaning away. “No, you don’t! If you did, you wouldn’t be making me do this!” He reached for me, and I batted his hand away, but he grabbed on instead. I could have flung him aside like a rag doll. Instead, he grabbed my other hand too.

Suddenly the Time Driver and the Autumn Driver’s alarms went off in a cacophony. Each time it started, it got a little bit into the tune before restarting and replaying.

“That’s like, twenty sensors going off at once,” Fall said, jogging over, with a globe of light blue light.

“Damn it. We need to go.” Rou let go of my hands. I jerked them back to my sides.

Fall spoke gently. “Meiki, are you coming?”

It had to be the sign from Asuka. “Yeah. Let’s go,” I said, heading to my bike.

“What was that all about?” Fall asked Rou quietly. “Did Asuka...?”

“I trust Meiki,” Rou said stubbornly. “We'll do what we can.”

“Against the rainbow asshole club?” Fall asked, horrified. “If her memories have turned against us... I can't fight both of them, Jiro.”

“She trusted you when it happened to you,” Rou said. “Come on.”

I glanced back. I thought about telling them I could hear them, that they shouldn't trust me, because I didn't trust them, but they noticed me looking and gave each other an odd look before hurrying to their motorcycles.

I almost wasn’t surprised when the sensors lead us back to my apartment complex.

I was definitely not surprised that Sharky and Anubis were standing in the parking lot. I parked, and held out a hand to stop Fall and Rou from advancing. “Wait. Let’s see what they’re doing. Sharky is really strong now, we shouldn’t do anything stupid.”

“Wait, that’s Sharky?” Fall said, leaning back as if to get a better look.

“Shh,” I said. Rou gave me a look, which I ignored.

“My sources said that this is where that Year girl lives. All we need to do now is take her memories of the other girl and no one will remember that friendship at all. And you’ll be strong enough to be a High ReMare,” Anubis said, looking up at the door to my apartment. Sharky was crouched down and poking at a leaf in a puddle. “Are you even listening, you idiot?”

“NO. YOU ALWAYS SAY THE SAME THING. I AM BORED,” Sharky rumbled without looking up.

“Stop playing around!” Anubis smacked Sharky’s head. Sharky whipped her head around, suddenly shark shaped again, and growled at Anubis. “The High ReMares will eat you alive without my help. It’s in your best interest to obey me!”

“He’s right, you know.” Asuka said, suddenly perched on the rail in front of my apartment on the second floor. Her human image shimmered briefly, before becoming a brilliantly plumed bird lady. She looked like something that would be found in a tropical rain forest. Streaks of black tarred the glowing feathers on her arms. Somehow she was even more beautiful. I stepped forward. Fall tried to grab me by the shoulder and hold me back, but I shrugged him off. “Ah, and here is my dear butterfly. So glad you could make it.”

“YEAR!” Sharky said, hopping up and to attention, “YOU’RE HERE! I DIDN’T THINK YOU WOULD COME!”

“It’s her apartment, idiot,” Anubis said, rubbing the bridge of his canine nose. “That is why we are here.”

“Give me the Time Driver, butterfly,” Asuka said, lightly floating down from her perch. “It’s time to complete the deal.”

“No! Meiki!” Rou shouted. I glanced back at him. His eyes were wide, and he lurched forward. “Please!” Fall grabbed him by the collar of his leather jacket and pulled him back. Fall had his double ended glaive in his other hand and trained on Asuka. She seemed supremely unconcerned.

The plea was not entirely on deaf ears. It did make me hesitate for a second. Only a second though. I wiped the Time Driver clear.

“Erase, Bye bye,” it said. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it sounded sad.

I held it out for Asuka, who took it gingerly and patted my head. “What a good little butterfly,” she said. I grinned stupidly. She jumped away, and sat back on her perch in front of my apartment. “Alright, Anubis. You may destroy her.”

“What?” I said, her words not processing in my mind. Had she really just told Anubis to attack me? I thought she wanted Anubis dead? “That wasn’t the deal…” I sank to the ground, suddenly feeling very weak and lost.

“Of course it was! Well, not the one with you, but I didn’t specify which deal I was honoring, did I? Oops, sorry, my mistake.” She covered her beak delicately with one hand, giggling to herself.

Anubis joined in with his own howling laughter. “Foolish girl,” he said, drawing a jet black staff, and advancing on me. He was right.

There was a flash of bronze in front of me, and Fall was there. It surprised me. I didn't deserve it. But he was there. “You’ll have to get through me, first!” Fall said, spinning his glaive and detaching it so it was now two weapons.

“That’s worked so well for you in the past, hasn’t it, Autumn?” Anubis asked, tilting his head slightly, grinning to show off his sharp teeth.

Fall tightened his grip on his glaives. The bronze energy of the glowing blades at the end sparked. “I will protect them!” He ran forward, throwing one glaive. Anubis stepped aside to dodge it, and swatted aside the second glaive with his staff. He took that opportunity to get within Fall’s defenses and punched him several times in quick succession before delivering a brutal kick that sent Fall flying. His transformation disappeared.

He didn't get up.

Rou swore and went to him.

“What a lovely mess you’ve made for your comrades. Too bad you and Sharky didn’t take my advice and destroy each other before you got all of your little friends involved.” Anubis shook his head in mock consternation.

“No… This isn’t what I wanted,” I whispered. But I couldn’t move. It was almost as if I had forgotten how. Which, now that I think of it, was probably exactly what happened.

Sharky crouched down, baring her teeth. “Oh? Are you going to finish the job now?” Anubis asked, slashing his staff at the empty air. “Too bad, you had your chance. She's mine.” Anubis was suddenly standing over me, staff pointed in my face.

“Any last words? This time you won’t be able to come back, cockroach. I’ll make sure of it,” Anubis growled. I stared up at him. I couldn’t do anything else. “No? Well then, that’s it.” He raised the staff to attack.

In a flash of color, Sharky crashed into him, jaws biting at his arm. Anubis howled, and tried to pull away from the shark. “Traitor! What are you doing?! Get off me, you… you idiot!”

Sharky emptied her mouth to retort, “YOU CAN’T KILL HER! SHE IS MY FRIEND AND SHE’S RIGHT! YOU’RE A BIG STINKY BAD DOG JERK!” She punctuated each insult with a punch. Anubis managed to roll out from under her and get to one knee. Sharky snarled and turned to face him. She ran at him again. Anubis slashed at Sharky, but the black staff passed cleanly through Sharky’s inky armor and left no damage. Sharky bit Anubis’s arm and tore it off.

Anubis cried out in pain. Sharky ignored it and bit off the dog’s other arm. Anubis’s inky form melted away, leaving only a large ball of pink light. Sharky ignored it, and turned towards Asuka. “YOU’RE NEXT, BIRDIE!” she said, pointing up at the other ReMare. “I WON’T LET YOU HURT HER!”

“Now I’ve seen everything. A human wanting to protect ReMares, and a ReMare protecting a human. Have the memories you’ve stolen infected you with feelings?” She dragged out the last word and laughed. “Do try. This day can only get more amusing.” Sharky roared a wordless challenge and pulled on the bottom of the rail, trying to dislodge Asuka from her perch. The bird ReMare looked down at her with an expression of amused pity.

Rou had propped up Aki against a tree, and came to check up on me, “Are you okay? Can you get out of here?”

“Can’t move my legs… I’m so sorry…” I said, slumping forward, barely catching myself from falling with my hands. “I don't know why I trusted her...”

“She messed with your head. Don’t worry. I’ll figure something out,” Rou said, brushing a lock of hair behind my ear. “We've been in worse situations.”

“What are you going to do?” I spat it out. He couldn’t fight. He didn’t have his own driver.

“I remembered a few important things. I’ll be fine.” It felt like a lie, but he flashed a smile that seemed oddly gentle for him, before standing up and walking to where Anubis had fallen. He picked up the pink orb and it absorbed into his skin. He shuddered, his eyes flashing pink. He turned away from me, watching Sharky’s attack.

Sharky had actually managed to pry several of the railing’s support bars off, and Asuka stood up and floated down to the ground rather than be dislodged ungracefully. Asuka summoned a thin bright yellow rapier and stood on guard. Her left hand held the Time Driver behind her back. Sharky threw herself at Asuka, attempting to bite and punch, but it seemed like Asuka barely deigned to notice the attacks. She stepped out of the way with grace, poking at Sharky with the rapier. Unlike Anubis’s staff, it left behind damage. Yellow welts sprung up wherever Asuka prodded.

Sharky slowed, panting hard. Asuka stood on guard again, relaxed and ready. “Well? I thought you were going to entertain me.”

“FUCK. YOU.” Sharky said between heavy breaths.

Asuka tisked but said nothing. Sharky began another onslaught. It was hard to follow, but this time, it seemed like a frown crossed Asuka’s face as she suddenly had to concentrate. More yellow welts sprung up over Sharky’s body.

Sharky jumped up and aimed a kick at Asuka. She barely got out of the way, spinning like a ballerina, and delivered a brutal slash across Sharky’s back. Sharky stumbled to the ground in front of me.

“Are you quite finished with this foolish assault?” Asuka asked, crossing her arms impatiently. “

Sharky laughed, but it broke into a coughing fit. “FINISHED,” she said, and slowly, painfully, stretched out her arm to me.

She had the Time Driver.

“TAKE, FRIEND. LET’s PLay… again…” her voice faded.

I couldn’t just refuse her, after she had risked her life for me. “Sharky, it's okay… I’ll take it…” I reached out and took it, “I’m so sorry. I was so stupid…”

“Not stupid. don’t let bad doggies say that…” Sharky muttered, squeezing my hand.

“Don’t… Just rest. We’ll get help,” I said, trying to pull myself up so I could cradle her head.

“When did you get that?!” Asuka demanded, suddenly standing over us.

It felt like my chest was suddenly full of white hot light. I swiped the Memoka across the Time Driver, and slowly brought it down to my waist, “Henshin,” I said quietly. White light swirled around me.

“This is your YEAR! Let’s go! Let’s go! Yeah!” The belt chimed. Strength returned to my limbs. I stood up slowly, glowing bright. The Prism Charge announced that it was ready immediately, and I drew the glowing white Prism Blade

Asuka took a step back, “You shouldn’t be able to--“ She had to stop and jump back, hastily raising her sword to parry a slash as I advanced with the Prism Blade. Our swords ground together, the Prism Blade giving off sparks of light. Asuka grit her teeth and knocked my hand away, delivering several quick thrusts to my chest before I could stagger back and get my guard up. She started circling me warily, and I shifted slowly so that she didn’t get behind me.

She lunged suddenly and I dodged, rolling on the ground and springing up to my feet. She noticed Rou crouching next to Sharky, and started to advance on them.

“No!” I ran and skidded to a stop in front of her, aiming a strike at her sword arm. She was too fast. She managed to block it. She rotated the sword in widening circles, and struck hard blow to my armored fist. The blade fell out of my hand and she kicked it out of the way, before stabbing at me a few more times. I staggered back. I could feel Year’s energy depleting. Fine. I swiped a hand across the Time Driver and uncapped the gold Memoka. I swiped it across the Time Driver and shouted “Henshin!”

Asuka aimed another attack, but glittering gold light, leaping like fishes, swirled around me, knocking her back. “Glitter Golden! Go!” My armor was now shiny and gold, and my cape had two golden carps that seemed to swim as it caught the wind.

No time to stop now. I rushed forward, just as the belt announced “Prism Charge Complete!” I drew it as I ran. This Memoka split into two and wrapped around my hands, and claws of golden light shot out of them. It seemed a suitable way to avenge Sharky. I raked the claws at Asuka. She tried to parry, but her sword just got caught between the claws and I knocked it away. She gasped as it clattered to the ground.

I slashed again. This time when she blocked it was with her arm. Golden slashes burned into her colorful plumage.

She jumped away. “Chh,” She tisked, holding her damaged arm with her good one. “I can’t believe you actually landed a hit on me.” She flexed the injured arm, as if testing the damage. The gold scars were already fading into the other colors. “That almost hurt.”

“You tricked me, and used me, and you hurt Sharky,” I growled. “I’m not done yet.”

“Oh, my little butterfly. Nothing would make me happier than to keep playing with you,” she grinned, baring her own talons.

“I’m not yours!” I shouted, and launched myself at her. She caught my hands with hers and we struggled to throw each other off balance. She swiped a foot at my leg and taking advantage of my unsteadiness, threw me across the parking lot. I crashed into the Synchrocycle. I struggled to my feet, but as I did, I saw something that made my blood run cold.

Rou had the Prism Blade raised, aimed at the center of Sharky’s back.

“Nooo!” I cried out, and ran towards him. It was too late. I saw the glowing white blade lower into Sharky’s back. Sharky whimpered and her inky body melted away, leaving a blue globe of light.

 

 


	8. Memories

I stood in the center of the parking lot in front of my apartment, dumbstruck. Had I really just seen Rou stab Sharky in the back? I had been ready to believe a lot of awful things of him earlier, but whatever hot bright light had come over me had burned out Asuka’s subtle suggestions and memory altering. I couldn’t believe it now. “Rou… Why?” I said, arms hanging limp by my sides.

“Meiko’s memories are back now. All of the missing memories about your friendship are back,” Rou said calmly. He pressed the button on the Prism Blade, restoring it to Memoka form and placed it neatly on the ground in front of him.

“Oh, this is rich. I’ll leave you to it,” Asuka said, giggling into her uninjured hand. She disappeared into the ground.

“I don’t care! Sharky saved me!” I shouted, raising my claws again, this time towards Rou. “And this is how you repay her!”

“I am saving her,” Rou said, standing up, holding the blue orb in one hand.

“Saving…” I hesitated, and had an idea, “ASUKA! Come back! You can bring Sharky back, can’t you?” I shouted, looking around wildly for the bird ReMare. She was gone.

“Idiot! Asuka will put her back into a blot and use her against you again,” Rou said, also looking around, a hint of fear in his expression.

“And leaving her dead is better?” I shouted.

“I can give her a real body! Like Arachne, or the Otter!” he said, pointing at the gold Memoka equipped to the Time Driver.

“So you can turn me into one of them, is that it? Damn it, she was right!” I ran at him, claws up.

He sighed and dodged calmly, grabbing both of my hands. With all my strength, I couldn’t bring myself to wrench my wrists out of his hands and deliver a terrible blow.

“I didn’t want to tell you like this but…” Rou took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He breathed out, and opened his eyes, and there was a flash of pink light. There was a massive glowing pink fox creature behind him, part of him.

The fox was like the ReMares, but also very much not like them. It was beautiful and terrible and so very bright. It was pure light.

“I’ll show you,” Rou and the Fox said at the same time, echoing each other.

Suddenly I was in the back of my high school classroom. Desks were pushed neatly to one side, in preparation for cleaning time. Everything had sort of a pinkish hue, like I was wearing sunglasses. Rou stood next to me, although it wasn’t entirely him anymore. His features had taken on a vaguely foxy look, and he had glowing pink ears and a fluffy pink tail.

“What’s going on?” I asked, stumbling away from him.

“Don’t be afraid.” Rou smiled. “It’s our past.”

Four kids streamed into the room. A younger me flouted the uniform rules with brightly colored mismatched knee socks and a ton of bracelets. Meiko followed closely after, her nose in a notebook. Aki was walking backwards, talking animatedly. And… Rou? His hair was black and unshaven at the sides, giving him a curly mop of hair. He looked tired, but it definitely was him.

“I don’t remember this,” I said, staring at the four.

“Alright, Mei Brigade, we’re graduating soon, so we should make some precious memories!” the younger me cheered.

“Let’s go to the top of Mount Shodai,” Aki said, dashing to the open wall of windows and half leaning out to point to the mountain in the distance. He turned back to us. “There’s a shrine there that protects friendship, memory, and loooove.” He clasped his hands together and batted his eyelashes, half in jest. Young Rou nearly smiled.

“And I’ve heard that hikers go up there and then wander back weeks later, dazed and confused. It's not a good idea.” Meiko said, not looking up from her book.

“That’s just a ghost story to keep kids from doing something dumb,” Aki said, waving a hand dismissively. “It's always a friend of a friend or somebody's cousin.”

“Too bad it doesn’t seem to work on the intended audience,” Meiko said, finally glancing up to give Aki a look. “And what about Rou?”

“What about him?” Aki said, flinging an arm around him.

“He’s sick, Aki. Do you really want to be responsible if something wrong happens?” Meiko asked. She glanced at Rou. “Sorry, Rou. You know what I mean.”

“It’s fine.” Rou shrugged, but his face looked serious.

“I’ll take care of him. I’m going to be a doctor,” Aki said, puffing out his chest. “I already got my letter of acceptance.”

“Which is kind of a miracle,” the younger me teased, “You managed to out nerd our nerds.”

“Hey, when I'm serious, I'm serious,” Aki said, grinning. “It's not like I'm saying we should go rock climbing. The school's taken elementary school kids up there for field trips. It'll be fiiiine.”

“Besides, we gotta live in color while we’re young.” The younger me also put an arm around Rou. “What do you think? If you're worried, we won't go.”

Rou was quiet for a moment and then nodded, “Yeah. I want to do it. I think we should. Besides, it’s to a shrine, right? It couldn’t hurt to pray.”

“See! We’ll ask the spirits for help,” Aki said, as if that was what he had intended the entire time.

Meiko sighed, “Fine. We’ll do it. But we’ll go prepared.”

The younger me and Aki cheered, and Rou grinned, his face flush.

The scene shifted.

We were all in front of the shrine at the top of a mountain. The cherry trees were all in bloom. It seemed odd, I couldn’t remember there being cherry trees on the top of Mount Shodai. We prayed at the altar, offered coins, rang the bell, and clapped our hands.

Our prayers were interrupted by a sudden scream from down the path. Without hesitating, Aki and I ran towards it. Meiko glanced at Rou, who nodded, and sat down on the steps to the temple. Meiko followed after us. Rou waited there for a long time, before getting up and following.

Except we were long gone. He started breathing hard, his vision swimming. He staggered, and tripped over a log, and down a ravine.

“Ah!” I shouted, reaching out for him instinctively.

The Fox Rou shook his head, “No.”

“But he’s hurt!” I said, forgetting that it was a memory and that I was angry at him.

“Yes. I'll live.” He smiled wryly. “Wait.”

“Isn’t that you? Aren’t you worried?” I said, gesturing towards the terribly still boy.

“It is. But it already happened. Watch.”

The scene shifted again. It was in a clearing on the mountain. A picnic area, probably. A pink fox made of light was surrounded by looming blots. A huge bear ReMare with glowing red circles on its cheeks reached down and grabbed the fox by the tail. The fox screamed, an unearthly sound. I glanced at Fox Rou, who watched with a stern expression.

Young me was the first at the scene, and noticed the fox struggling under the weight of the bear. I grabbed a large stick off the ground and brandished it at the blots. They scattered, but didn't go far. Aki was there behind me with a walking stick, knocking their heads roughly. I hit the bear against the head, “Stop! You’re hurting it!”

It got the bear’s attention. It loomed up over me, easily twice my height. Young me seemed to realize exactly how stupid my actions had been, and took two cringing steps back. The fox staggered to his feet, and darted off through the underbrush in a blur of pink light.

Meiko was there now too, throwing rocks at blots and backing up Aki. Both of them looked up and realized the trouble I was in was in. “Get out of there, Meiki!” Meiko shouted.

Instead of listening to that perfectly good advice, the younger me hit the bear with the stick again. It roared and swatted me away. I crashed into a tree.

The bear ReMare advanced. My friends ran to stand at either side of me, guarding me. The ReMare didn’t care. It ignored their attacks and picked me up by the front of my shirt. I dangled in the air, struggling against the beast’s huge paws. I seemed to falter and become confused, but I still struggled weakly.

“Is it taking my memories?” I asked, feeling sick to my stomach. Who even was I?

“Yes. All of them. This ReMare is too rough and strong to be selective,” Rou said quietly. “Now, here it comes.”

The little pink fox from earlier burst into the clearing. There was a flash of bright white light. Behind me, an impossibly bright woman appeared. She was nearly as tall as the bear, and was draped in glittering white robes. Or perhaps they were not white at all? As she moved shimmers of colors subtly rippled over her.

The bear stared at her and let me drop to the ground. It shuffled away, disappearing into the woods. Aki gasped and scrambled back, watching with awe. Meiko dropped to her knees next to me, pulling me up and checking to see if I was safe. “Who are you?” she asked, watching the Bright Lady warily.

The Bright Lady smiled, and reached down and brought me to my feet. Meiko held onto my hand, not letting me go. The Bright Lady patted her head, and leaned down to kiss my forehead. “My champion,” she dubbed me, and I saw my expression change from dazed pain to bright and alert. Her kiss left behind a shining print on my forehead. “Thank you all, for defending one of mine. Please. Would you save the others from the corruption?”

The young me nodded and knelt at her feet. “Yes, my lady,” I said in awe.

The bright lady smiled, and with one fluid motion, she traced two rectangles in the air, one thin and narrow, and the other one was a little wider. She drew a complicated sigil around them with white light. She gestured again and the rectangle became solid and she bestowed it upon my younger self.

Her power and light felt so very familiar to the current me. “Is that...?” I asked.

“The Time Driver? Yes. She’s the Bright Lady. She gave you Year. I had forgotten,” Rou laughed bitterly, “I don’t know how I thought I made the Time Driver myself. I couldn’t even get it to work for me properly… I’m sure she’ll think that bit of arrogance amusing.”

I watched my younger self stand and put the belt over my waist and draw across it with the white Memoka. “Henshin!”

“This is your YEAR! Let’s go! Let’s go! Yeah!” The belt chimed. I was Year. Year posed and the Bright Lady laughed like dappled light filtering through the trees.

“Meiki…” Meiko said, standing back a little, concern crossing her face.

Year gave her a thumbs up. “Don’t worry. I’ll get the bear. Go make sure Rou is alright!”

She nodded and took Aki’s hand and hurried away. Year nodded at the Bright Lady and went after the bear.

The scene shifted again.

“Wait! What happened?” I asked, caught up in the scene.

“I wasn’t there to observe that, but you defeated it, and restored it to a spirit orb.” Rou said. “I believe Kumamon was able to return to his spirit form, but it has been a long time since I have seen him. Regardless, you did well.”

This time the fox was watching Aki and Meiko at the shrine. They were worried. They called out Rou’s name as they ran around searching for him.

“Where is he?” Meiko asked, her voice rattled with fear.

“That fucking idiot probably wandered off after us. Goddamn it, that bear is still out there,” Aki swore, stomping around.

“Unless Meiki already beat it,” Meiko said quietly.

“Man, I don’t even know if I believe that happened just now,” Aki said, shaking his head.

“It’s not every day that a goddess pops up and blesses one of your friends,” Meiko said deadpan, and current me couldn’t help but laugh. Rou glanced at me, eyebrow raised. Aki was with me though. He snorted with laughter, and shook his head.

“No, I guess it’s not,” he said. His amusement quickly dampened, “If that idiot has gotten hurt…”

“Which one?” Meiko asked.

“Both of them!” Aki said, throwing his arms up in the air.

“We’ll just have to believe in them,” Meiko said. She sighed. “I knew this was a bad idea.”

“I don't think any of us could have known that this was going to happen,” Aki said. “So stop with the I-told-you-so's. Jiro probably just went to the toilet.”

The fox stood up from his hiding spot and limped off.

Black ink marred its back paw.

“Was that there before?” I asked, hushed and worried.

“It’s from the bear’s attack.” Rou said, looking away. His face reddened. “I was hoping I could find a way to get rid of it before the infection spread. Before any other spirits noticed. I didn't want to fight the Bright Lady's champion. I... am not very strong on my own.”

I sighed, and looked away too. “I guess I can understand that,” I said, thinking about how I hadn’t told the others about seeing Asuka the second time, thinking about my reluctance to fight.

The fox followed the young Rou’s trail, pausing to sniff and look around. He trudged on, even though it seemed obvious that the inked leg was paining it.

He found where Rou had fallen. He peeked over the edge of the ravine, and gingerly made his way down to the crumpled boy. Blots appeared at the edges of the ravine, staring down at them. The fox looked up nervously and hurried to Rou. He nudged the boy’s arm away from his face. “Listen, boy. You’re dying. And I’m gone if one more of those things gets a hold of me. I don’t want to become an eater of memories. And your friends love you and are chosen by the Bright Lady… I don’t want to make them sad. Please. Let me share your body. We will both be stronger,” the fox said in a hasty low voice. “Quickly, now, before the blots complete their infection.”

The boy’s eyes opened slowly, and with the slightest pained movements, he blinked slowly. The fox looked up at the blots stumbling down the ravine. “That’ll have to be a yes!” The fox said. He jumped into the air, coiling into a large glowing pink orb, the small patch of ink burning off, before settling down into Rou’s chest. Rou glowed pink for a moment, before the color dissipated, except for in his hair, which now had a shock of pink down the middle. He sat up slowly, looking at his hands in wonder. He ran them over his ribs, once broken, now only sore.

The blots were still coming.

Rou struggled to get to his feet, staggering and staring at his feet as if unsure what they were. The blots got closer.

“Is Rou still even in there?” I asked, glancing at the current Rou, whose glowing pink fox ears twitched.

“Of course I am. But I had just been unconscious and neither of us were used to sharing a body. Ki hadn’t ever had a solid body before.”

“Ki?” I asked.

“Me, of course,” Rou said again. “The fox part, anyway.”

“So then should I call you Rouki or something?” I asked, and Rou laughed. Rouki sounded like the word for remembering.

“I suppose that’s apt. But no, Rou is fine.” He shook his head.

The younger Rou was scrambling up the side of the Ravine, the ground giving way beneath his grip as the blots advanced.

Then Year appeared, and the Time Driver shouting Vanishing Point. Year crashed through the blots and punched out the few stragglers. She stood there for a moment, catching her breath, before offering a hand to Rou to help him up.

“Meiki!” Young Rou said, taking Year’s hand and letting me help him out of the Ravine.

“How’d you know?” Year laughed, “I’ve got a mask and stuff! What happened to your hair?”

“My hair?” Rou looked confused. “Ah…” Rou seemed to struggle for a moment, “A fox told me.”

“Oh! That guy! Is he alright?” Year asked.

Rou smiled and nodded, “Yeah. He is. Thanks.”

The scene faded away and we were back in the present. Rou still had a grip on my arms. I slumped down to the ground, and he let me go. “I don’t have memories of when you forgot being Year. As far as I know, I wasn’t there to witness it. But I think it might be the same ReMare who stole everyone’s memories of my existence.”

“And I almost let it happen again,” I said, staring down at the ground.

“Some ReMares find it funny when humans get stuck in a loop because of them. I think that’s what Asuka was aiming for,” Rou said, “That or she hoped you would take out Sharky and Anubis, since they were gathering power to themselves.”

“And what about Sharky?” I said, frowning and looking up at Rou.

“I’ll put her in an origami bot, like Arachne, until she can recover her true form. One without blots corrupting her,” he said, and held out his hand to help me up. I looked at it and took the offered hand, standing slowly. I wiped off the Time Driver.

“Erase, bye bye!” it said, before my armor disappeared. It was a good thing that Rou was still right there, because I staggered hard as the injuries I sustained fighting Asuka hit me like a wrecking ball. Rou put an arm under my shoulder, keeping me barely on my feet.

“Let’s get you upstairs,” Rou said, walking me slowly to the stairs.

“I can do it,” I said, catching the rail and leaning on that instead. “Get Aki up here too.”

“Are you sure?” Rou asked, and I nodded. I wasn’t sure, but I didn’t like the idea of leaving Aki out here by himself. Rou seemed to understand, and jogged off across the parking lot to Aki. He picked him up carefully.

I concentrated on climbing the stairs. Everything hurt. Asuka had hit me more with that stupid little sword than I had realized. I managed to get half way up and paused to catch my breath. Finally I got up to my room, leaning hard against the wall. I left the door open for Rou and Aki, and sat down in a chair at my kitchen table. When Rou brought Aki in, I nodded to the bedroom. “He can rest there. I’ll be fine.” Rou nodded and made sure Aki was settled on my bed. I don’t know how long it took before he came out to the kitchen again. I was pretty sure I was drifting in and out of consciousness myself. “Too bad it’s our doctor that’s passed out, huh?” I said bleakly raising my head when I noticed Rou’s footsteps.

“I bandaged him up, but I think he’ll be okay. He’s a tough little guy,” Rou said, sitting down across from me at the table and taking out a piece of dark blue origami paper. The purple origami spider had followed him out and was climbing up the side of the table. “How about you?”

“Nothing’s punctured, somehow. Whatever you did to the Time Driver must have helped,” I said, gingerly prodding at my ribs.

“It might have, but I think the Bright Lady had a hand in things today. You were blazing. It was actually a little hard to look at you,” Rou said, carefully folding the paper.

“Yeah… It did sort of feel the same as it did in your memory. And I don’t know how else I would have been able to stand,” I said. I stood up very carefully and shuffled to the freezer.

“Wait, sit down! Let me get it,” Rou said, standing up quickly.

I pulled out an ice pack. “Don’t worry. I got it,” I said, hugging it against my chest.

The doorbell rang, followed by rapid pounding. I jumped, and then hissed at the pain it caused me.

Rou stood up and looked out the peephole, before swinging the door open. “It’s Meiko!” He announced, turning to grin at me. And it was. She stood there in the doorway, looking more frazzled than I’d ever seen her. Which is to say, her hair was slightly disheveled and she looked like she had been running. She smiled and brushed hair out of her eyes.

And I froze. How could I face her, after trying to protect someone who had messed up our lives? How could I tell her that I had protected Sharky, and had tried to attack Rou for delivering the final blow that had restored her memories?

“Meiki! I remember! You did it!” she said, and stepped into the apartment, arms open wide to hug me.

Summoning strength I didn’t realize I had left, I bolted for the bathroom and locked the door behind me. I leaned up against the door, breathing hard in panic.

Things were quiet in the other room for a moment, and then there was a soft knock on the bathroom door. “Meiki, are you alright? Please come out…” she said, her tone so gentle and soft that I nearly did it. But how dare I? I had done nothing but mess up lately, and the worst thing was, if it all happened again, I knew that I would have done things the same way. Well. I hoped I wouldn’t fall so stupidly to Asuka’s schemes, but Sharky had protected me, and had claimed me as a friend. Even at the expense of Meiko’s memories, I would have protected Sharky again.

I was the worst.

“No. I’m sorry, Meiko. I can’t,” I said, sniffling and wiping tears away as I tried to put that as firmly as I could. “Go away.”

I heard her sigh, as if about to say something, and then retreat away from the door. I could hear Rou’s muffled voice. Explaining what had happened, probably. I sunk down to the floor, holding the ice pack to my chest, thinking it would be great if it could freeze my heart as well. Maybe then I’d feel less like a puppy caught ruining a house while panicking because her human was away.

Suddenly the doorknob rattled. “Go away! Please!” I said, curling up more.

The doorknob disappeared entirely, accompanied by a loud crunching noise. I looked up and stared at it, shocked. I scooted backward towards the opposite side of the bathroom. A dark blue figure wormed its way through the hole left by the door and shook itself out. A shark. An origami shark.

“Sharky?” I asked, the tears welling up in my eyes again.

The shark bobbed up and down, giving me a toothy papery grin.

“You’re okay?” I asked, stretching out a hand to touch her. She rubbed up against my hand, making happy chomping noises. And then she bit me. “Ouch!” I shouted. She might have been made out of paper, but somehow the process of combining her spirit with the paper made her something more. She let go. “What was that for?” I said, shaking my hand to try and relieve some of the pain. This time, she grabbed my shirt, and pulled. I got up reluctantly, wincing at my aches. She let go of me again, and swam through the air to the door, and then back to me. “You want me to go out?” She nodded. “But…” She bit my shirt again and pulled me forward. “Okay, okay!” I said and pushed open the broken door. Sharky let go of my shirt, and smugly floated above my shoulder as I edged back into the kitchen.

Rou was the only one there, sitting at the table and making something with yellow origami this time. He spared me a glance. “Oh good. You’re back,” he said.

“Is she?” I asked, glancing around for Meiko.

“Mad at you? Maybe a little, but only because you’re being silly,” Rou said, raising an eyebrow at me. “What in the world possessed you to do that?”

I shrugged and traced a swirl in the marble of the kitchen counter top to avoid eye contact. Sharky popped up in my vision with a big toothy grin. I patted her on the head and looked up. “I didn’t know what to do. I was going to sacrifice her memories…” I trailed off. We were both quiet for a long moment.

“We talked a lot today, the two of us,” he said suddenly. “It feels like a lifetime ago, but I think she’ll understand.” He smiled and creased the yellow paper he was working with. “She’s a pretty smart lady. She was very worried something was wrong with you when you woke up. She thought a ReMare must have gotten to you.”

“She was right...” I said, surprised more because that made me smile, than that she had figured it out.

“She didn’t think you were being yourself. She was very angry with Aki about abandoning you,” Rou said. He paused and tilted his head. “I think if anyone will understand your feelings, it will be her.”

For a moment I felt like I was teetering on the edge of the cliff. If I talked to her, she might hate me. But if I ran away, I’d regret it. I made my choice. I’d face her. “Where did she go?” I asked, my face burning.

“She’s checking on Aki in your room,” Rou said. Before he even finished I was moving. I opened my bedroom door a little harder than I intended. It bounced back on its sliding track a little, and I stumbled into the room. Meiko was sitting on a chair next to my bed, leaning over Aki. She glanced up at my noisy entrance.

The feeling that this was a stupid bad idea and that I looked like a moron came crashing down on me. “Uh, hi…” I said stupidly.

“Hello,” she replied, sounding amused, like she was watching a particularly backwards puppy bark at its own reflection.

The dam around my feelings burst. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t want to fight Sharky anymore! She said we were friends, and wanted to play with me, and then she protected me, and I got so mad at Asuka and Rou for hurting her and,” I said the apologies tumbling out of me. I couldn’t stop it my words, and I couldn’t stop the tears that streaked down my cheeks.

Meiko stood up and crossed the room. She wrapped her arms around me and held me close. My apologies devolved into senseless babbling. “Shh, Shh. It’s okay.”

“It's not okay! I shouldn't have put her first.”

“I can’t hold that against you, Meiki.”

“But your memories-”

“My memories of you are very, very important to me, yes,” Meiki agreed, and I sobbed, “Shh. Let me finish. They are important to me because you are like that. You’ve got a good heart.”

I opened my mouth to argue again. “No. Don't. I've already forgiven you.”

I sniffled, and buried my face in her shoulder. “It’s been so hard,” I admitted, “With you forgetting, and trying to fight and not understanding what was going on…”

“You’ve done a good job, despite all that,” Meiki said, petting my hair.

“No, I haven’t! I keep messing everything up!” I objected, pulling away from her a little so I could look her in the eye. “I got tricked, and I got hurt, and Aki got hurt and…”

“You two will heal and get better. Sharky is safe now. My memories are back. And Rou said he got some important memories back too.”

“That was all Rou and Sharky,” I said.

“Do you blame me for forgetting you?” Meiko asked.

“No! Of course not!”

“But it messed up a lot of things in our life,” she said.

“But you didn't remember! And you tried so hard to help me anyway!”

“Asuka took some of your memories, Meiki. We're not going to blame you for messing up because of that,” Meiko said. “We've got your back, too. Even if you decide to throw the Time Driver in a lake.”

For a moment it was tempting. What Asuka had said about the Time Driver using ReMare energy still terrified me. “Really?”

“Yes. But I think you will keep going, because you are strong, and you want to save everyone. Even the ReMares,” she said, calm and reasonable as always. “And you will.”

I looked at her deep brown eyes. She was right. Of course she was right. I couldn't lose her again. I couldn't let Aki fight alone. I couldn't let Sharky's sacrifice be in vain, especially since I knew I could save her and the others. And Rou. He had stepped in when I had faltered. Had assured me that things would be okay, even right after I had tried to attack him. I didn't want to lose any of them.

I wanted to ask what she would do if I turned into a monster. I glanced away. “Do you really think that?”

Meiko gently cupped my face with one hand and made me look at her again. “Of course I do.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed me. My heart went boom and I could feel it from my ears all the way down to my toes, like fireworks.

She broke away, and smiled. I stood there, brick red and stupefied. My worries about Year had melted away, replaced with such coherent thoughts as: Girl!! Kiss!! Meiko!! WHAT?? Sharky circled us, chomping and bobbing around in the air happily.

“Told you. Hella gay for justice,” Aki muttered from my bed, one eye open. Meiko shot him a cool stare, and he immediately shut it. “Resting, I’m resting, don’t mind me,” he said quietly.

“He’s one to talk,” Meiko muttered, and turned back to me, her cheeks a little pink. “So…”

I sat down on the chair, dazed. “I, um…”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to surprise you-“ Meiko started, her voice growing smaller.

“No!” I said loudly, making her jump a little. “No,” I repeated, quieter this time, “I’m happy.” She smiled her amazing smile and I knew I had said the right thing for once. I gathered enough words to string together and said, “Although when I imagined seeing you for the first time after you getting your memories back, I had really expected you to punch me in the arm and not... kiss...” And there I lost them again. I am so suave.

“Oh, I was saving that for when you felt less sorry for yourself,” Meiko said, lightly tapping me on my upper arm with her fist. I laughed and hugged her again.

Rou appeared in the doorway, leaning against the frame. He flashed me a smug smile, “See, I told you. Nothing to worry about.”

I grinned down at Meiko, and let her go. I took a step towards Rou, confidence brimming. I could take on anything at that moment. “Hey. Do you think we can track down Asuka and finish what we started?”

“Already made the tracer,” Rou said, holding up a flat little yellow bird origami. “You just have to write her name on it.”

“I thought the tracers were foxes? Because they’re good at finding things?” I asked, glancing over at Aki.

“It would only work to find me, I’m afraid,” Rou said, with a wry grin. “But that is what I told Aki to do. I had forgotten it worked with ReMares too. It's a little sketchy if I don't know their energy signature, though.”

I walked forward to take it, but Meiko caught my hand. “No.” I glanced back at her, ready to object, but she just shook her head. “You and Meiaki-san are going to rest first. And Rou?”

“Yes?” he said, standing up straight, tucking the origami in his pocket.

“You’re going to make me a driver,” she said firmly.

“What? No, you’ll be in danger. I don’t want you to get hurt!” I said. I furrowed my eyebrows, and glanced back at Rou. “Rou, tell her you can’t!”

Meiko gave me a stern stare. I matched it. She was stubborn, but I could be too.

Rou cleared his throat, “It's not a bad idea, actually.”

“What?!” I spat, spinning to face him, abandoning the battle of wills with Meiko to give Rou a hurt and confused stare.

“She’s fought with you before. You saw,” he said, reminding me of her throwing stones at the blots in his memories. And more recently, of her helping me to fight Sharky in the radio booth. She had even hit the blot that would become Sharky with a chair. It didn’t really make me feel any better about it. “And it’s her choice, not yours.”

“I wouldn’t want to fight her. She’s scary,” Aki whined from the bed, no longer pretending to sleep. “I’d rather her be on our team.”

“But…” I objected weakly.

“Do you think I like that you’re in danger and getting hurt either?” Meiko asked, “Respect my choices.”

I sighed, “Alright. I’m sorry.”

“Thank you,” she said, and kissed my cheek. “Besides, armor would help protect me from losing my memories again. If you don't beat a ReMare I can't even remember seeing it.”

“Heh,” I said, rubbing my cheek and blushing again. She had a point.

“For justice,” Aki stage whispered dramatically.

Meiko picked a pillow off the floor and tossed it at him.

“If we’re going to do this, we need to hurry. Meiko, can you stop by the lab? It’ll go faster with your help,” Rou said. Meiko nodded, and Rou addressed Aki and me. “The two of you should rest and eat. Get your energy back. We’ll let you know when everything is ready.”

“Let’s do it. Living in Color,” I said, grinning. Aki gave a tired thumbs up from my bed.


	9. Mei Brigade

The Golden Week holidays passed. Meiko and I had the week off, thankfully. We had planned to go on vacation, but I spent it recovering instead. Aki stayed at my apartment, gauging both of our progress. After two days, he tried to go back to his restaurant but came back after an hour proclaiming that Rou and Meiko were incredibly annoying and he’d stay here until they were finished with their nerd frenzy. Every so often either Rou or Meiko would stop by to check up on us and bring us groceries, before disappearing off to the lab again.

Sometime in early May, I woke up, and did a few stretches, and was surprised to find that the movement didn’t hurt. The bruises had faded, and I was feeling strong again. I grinned and walked out of the bedroom Aki and I had been sharing. Aki was making breakfast, humming softly to himself as he stirred the miso soup. Sharky bobbed around the stove, interested in the process of human food. “Is it almost ready? I could eat a horse,” I complained, sitting down at the table. Sharky swam over and tugged on my braid, agreeing with the sentiment.

“Yeah, yeah. Just a minute,” Aki said, starting to dish things up. He sat a heaping bowl of rice, a bowl of soup, a plate of fish, another plate of veggies with some kind of sauce, and a plate of pickles in front of me.

I clapped my hands in front of me and said thanks, before digging in, “Oh man, this is so good. Marry me, would you?” I said between bites. It had been really nice to have a professional chef making all my meals at home.

“Sure. But I’m pretty sure Meiko would murder me with just her eyes,” Aki said, pleased by the compliment anyway. He sat down and started in on his own considerable breakfast.

“No, no, see she doesn’t like cooking, so it’d work out,” I said, waving a hand dismissively. “And she always complains about how cluttered everything is here so…”

He narrowed his eyes, “Wait a second. You’re just looking for a housewife to do stuff for you.”

“Noooo?” I said, grinning, and he pretended to scowl at me.

The front door opened without a knock. Meiko and Rou came in arguing over something.

“I still think we should give them another day,” Meiko said, slipping out of her shoes as she came in. “I’d like to practice with Winter before we do anything too serious.”

“Yeah, but the longer we wait, the more chances Asuka has to get stronger too,” Rou said, following her to the kitchen table, “Good morning, guys.”

“Yo,” Aki said, lazily saluting him. “So, is it go time?”

“I’m back to fighting fit if you are,” I said, shrugging and stuffing half a grilled fish in my mouth.

“Sure. As fit as I’ll ever be,” Aki agreed.

“I’d still like to try out Winter first,” Meiko grumbled.

“Getting cold feet?” I asked. “You could sit out this fight.” I gave her a hopeful smile and she shook her head.

“No. If you’re going, I’m coming too,” Meiko said.

“The plan is that she’ll run back up,” Rou explained, setting a large, hard leather suitcase on the table and started twisting the dials on the locks.

“Yeah, leave the front lines for the veterans,” Aki said, waving his chopsticks at Meiko, who narrowed her eyes at him, “Ah, I’m slain!” he said, suddenly clutching his chest and sticking out his tongue.

“You will also be on back up duty,” Rou said. He opened the suitcase.

“Aw, man,” Aki whined.

“Year’s the only one who is going to stand a chance against a High ReMare. You know how fast Anubis knocked you out, and he was just a general,” Rou explained, and brought out a new Memoka. This one was pale blue.

“To be fair, he was mainlining another ReMare's memories, which is fucking weird, Jiro,” Aki said, but he didn’t argue further. “I told you before that guy is really strong.”

“I know. But Ki isn't a ReMare. He's a spirit.” Rou said.

“Sure,” Aki agreed.

“They're different,” Rou said sternly. Aki shrugged, and Rou gave up. He handed the Memoka to me. “Here. Courtesy of one Chameleon.”

“Natasha,” I said, reminding him of the ReMare’s name. I took it. “What's this one do?”

“It should be easier to move with it, which is good, considering our opponent. Although Golden was a good choice too,” Rou said, sounding thoughtful. He pulled out a second box, opened it, and held it out for Meiko. “Here. The Winter Driver. I know you’ve seen it already, but I figured I’d hand it over with everyone around.”

It looked very similar to Aki’s Autumn Driver, but it had a different sigil in red, blue, and green on the front, and the frame was green. “Thank you,” Meiko said, as she carefully lifted it out of the box.

“Do I get anythiiiing?” Aki asked, leaning against Rou’s shoulder, “Pleeease?” He batted his eyelashes at him.

“I can give you this,” Rou said, holding up the yellow bird origami.

“That’s not a cool upgrade,” Aki said, crossing his arms.

“Ah, well then… Nope, sorry,” Rou said. Aki’s face fell to a dramatic pout.

“No faaaair,” Aki whined.

Rou grinned slowly. “Oh, alright. I did tune up your driver a bit,” Rou said, holding it out for Aki.

“I don’t get a fancy box?” Aki said, still pouting. Rou rolled his eyes, took the box that had held Meiko’s driver, and put the Autumn Driver in it, and handed it back. “Sweet! Thanks!” Aki said, taking his driver back.

I drank what was left of my soup. “Enough playing around. We should get going,” I said, standing up.

“Sure, it’s time to go only after you finish eating,” Aki muttered, attempting to scarf the remains of his breakfast down.

“Maybe you should talk less,” Meiko said, her tone deceptively sweet. Aki rubbed his eye as if he were wiping away a tear that wasn’t there at all, before taking his last bite and standing up.

Once we got down to the parking lot, Rou gave me the tracking origami, and I stuck it on the Synchrocycle’s Pair Device. A map appeared with a little bird icon blinking on it. Meiko rode behind me on the Synchrocycle, because they didn’t have time to make her a Pair Device like mine and Aki’s. Aki had his Harvester, and Rou rode his own normal motorcycle.

The tracker brought us to a big warehouse. “This doesn’t seem like her kind of place,” Aki mentioned as we parked.

“She was hanging out at that abandoned hospital,” I reminded him.

“Be wary, she could be planning a trap,” Rou advised, “She understood how to manipulate the alarms, so she might guess that we have other ways of finding her.”

“Why? It’s not like we tried to track down Sharky that way,” Aki said, taking off his bike helmet.

“I told you, I didn’t remember it would work. And I was sure she would eat one of the sensors,” Rou said, jabbing a thumb in Sharky's direction. Sharky bobbed in agreement. She totally would have. “And I've had run ins with Anubis before. There's a pretty good chance that Asuka knows my old tricks.”

“It doesn’t matter now. Let’s go,” I said, and led the way into the warehouse, crouching behind boxes as I went. Rou stayed behind with the bikes. Ostensibly to make sure we still had an escape route, but it was mostly just to keep him away from Asuka.

I heard voices from the other side of the room. I put my finger over my lips to warn Aki and Meiko, and quietly went ahead to get a better listen.

“I told you I wanted Year gone again. Instead she brought back Autumn and injured you. I’m sure you can understand how this is troubling,” an unfamiliar deep voice rumbled.

“It was just a scratch. And those upstarts Sharky and Anubis are no longer a concern,” Asuka said. She sounded as composed as ever, but it was odd to hear her willingly spill an explanation.

“And instead of falling into our pocket, they’ve lost their blots. Excellent,” the other voice said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “I am starting to rethink our alliance, Asuka.”

“It won’t take much to get the light back. I already have a new plan to draw Year and Fall out and breed strife among them,” Asuka said.

“Is that so? Then I hope it can be implemented quickly. They’re here,” the deep voice rumbled, and suddenly the big crate that we were hiding behind lifted up, revealing a massive bull headed ReMare. Like Asuka, he was colorful, with only his hands, hooves, and horns tipped with inky black. He threw the crate away like it was nothing.

A flicker of surprise crossed Asuka’s face, but she immediately composed herself, “Well, how unexpected, little butterfly. And I see Rou is absent. Did you destroy him after all?”

“Are you going to use up all your questions already, Asuka?” I grinned, throwing her words back at her. She frowned prettily.

Aki pulled me closer to me and whispered harshly in my ear, “Maybe don’t be so cocky this time, there are two of them. They’re both High ReMares.”

“There are three of us,” I reminded him. “And she's acting like a peon.”

Asuka clicked her tongue and clenched her fists.

“Shhhhhhhh,” Aki shushed. “Don’t be stupid.”

“Don’t worry, tiny insect babies. Asuka will take care of you, or she won’t be coming back to the Under,” the bull said, crossing his massive arms. “We won’t tolerate a High ReMare making the same mistakes twice.”

“Minotaur!” Asuka said, her hand over her mouth, sounding terribly scandalized.

“You heard me, Asuka,” Minotaur said, before splashing down and disappearing into the ground.

“Agh!” Asuka stomped her foot prettily and summoned her sword. “Fine! I was tired of playing with you anyway!” She ran towards us, pulling her sword back to strike.

There was a sound like bells and wind, and Meiko’s bell announced, “Winter HOWL!” A blue-green sigil passed over her and there was a flash of red light. Her armor appeared. Asuka’s sword struck one that was as massive as Asuka’s was delicate. It looked more like a shield as it sparked off blue-green light where Asuka’s sword had struck

Asuka tisked and jumped back to assess the situation. “There’s another one of you,” she stated. Meiko’s Winter armor was dark blue, with green plates of armor on the arms and legs and chest. Around her neck she had a red poncho that covered the mouth area of her mask and her shoulders. Her mask’s eyes were two mint green half circles, giving her an incredibly bored look. She had a single pronged horn like a rhino beetle.

“Hmph.” Winter swung her massive sword up to a more offensive position.

“Told you she was scary,” Aki muttered, and stamped his Autumn Driver and put it on his waist. “Henshin!”

“FALL OUT! It’s harvest time! GO!” His belt said, and the bronze sigil passed over him and his armor appeared.

I held up the Time Driver, and brought it down. “Henshin!” I shouted, marking it with the new light blue Memoka, before putting it on my waist. The belt appeared around me, and I was showered with blue light.

“It’s raining! It’s pouring! Go Rain!” The belt said to the sound of a xylophone scale.

The Rain armor was pale blue with silver trim, and the cape had swirling clouds and shimmering rain on it. I posed, crossing my arms in front of me and then bringing them down to a fighting stance. “We’re living in color! And you can’t stop us!” I pointed at her and then clenched my fist.

“You’re not the only one with back up, little butterfly.” Asuka sang out a few wordless notes, and blots started appearing all over the warehouse.

Winter heaved her sword in a wide arc, knocking out several of them. “We’ve got your back, Rain!”

Fall spun his dual ended glaive, hitting one blot with one end, and then thrusting the other at a second one, “Go!”

I nodded, and headed towards Asuka. I punched a blot on the way, and then kicked over a barrel at another. “Prism Charge Complete!” the belt announced, and I drew the weapon. “Prism Whip! Go! Go! Go!” It announced. The handle was similar to the hilt of the Prism Blade, but the glowing light blue light behaved like a whip instead.

“I see you’ve enslaved another ReMare. Poor Chameleon,” Asuka taunted, circling me warily.

“Her name is Natasha. And when she’s strong enough, she’ll make her own body again,” I said, flicking the whip at Asuka. She slashed it with her sword. The tip of the whip severed off, and disappeared but immediately reappeared whole again.

Winter had climbed up on a stack of boxes and jumped down at a larger blot, kicking it in the face, and whacking another with her sword. Fall was surrounded, delivering jabs at blots that got too close. Winter went over to him, “Watch your feet,” She said, before taking a low swipe with her sword. The blots were knocked off their feet. Fall jumped out of the way, and took the time to deliver a diving kick to another blot’s face.

“Careful with that thing,” Fall retorted, chucking one of the glaives at a blot that was apparently considering me distracted enough to not notice it’s advance.

“Hmph,” Winter said, going after her own blot. There didn’t seem to be an end to them. No matter how many they knocked down, new ones appeared from the ground.

Asuka jumped forward suddenly, raining down a flurry of stabs with her sword. The first hit me, but then time seemed to slow, and it was suddenly very easy to just simply dodge them. I struck back with a solid punch, knocking her back. She skidded to a stop on her feet, and launched herself again. I attacked with the whip, aiming to strike her across the face. She jumped up out of the way aiming a kick for my head. I ducked down and spun out of her way. She landed behind me and grabbed a fistful of my cape, yanking it down hard and putting the edge of her sword at my throat.

“Any last words, little butterfly?” she asked.

“You’ve… asked… enough questions,” I said, struggling against her grip. Capes. Cool, but kind of dangerous. Who knew?

Winter looked up in alarm, and started hurrying to help. She was too slow. Fall took a leap on to the flat side of her sword, and with a mighty heave, Winter launched Fall at Asuka. His glaive caught her across the back, leaving a jagged amber wound. Asuka gasped and let go of my cape, spinning around to attack Fall. She knocked aside his glaive and stabbed at him a few times. Sharky appeared in her face, snapping at her hair and shoulders. Fall staggered back, taking a rolling dive for both of his glaives, and coming up on his knees with them. Asuka made an annoyed noise and swatted Sharky away. Sharky crashed to the concrete. Her crumpled form twitched but didn't move.

Asuka moved forward as if she intended to stomp on the origami shark.

“Sharky!” I shouted, and cracked the Prism Whip at Asuka. It wrapped around her arm, burning the area around it pale blue. I pulled and dragged her closer to me. Asuka shouted and sliced the end of the whip off, freeing herself.

“I tire of your insolence, Rain,” Asuka said, rubbing the pale blue burns. They were fading quickly. “I’m afraid you’ve gone and made me angry.” Her tone was deceptively light.

“I could say the same of you. Funny how that works,” I said, tilting my head at her. I cracked the whip at her. It wrapped around her other arm. This time she grinned and yanked me towards her, stabbing hard with her sword. “AGH!” I cried out, and sunk to the ground.

Winter had finally reached us. “No!” She swung her huge sword at Asuka. Asuka disappeared and reappeared on top of the blade. Asuka ran down the blade. Her feet sizzled and scarred, but she ignored it, delivering a flurry of shallow thrusts at Winter, who dropped the sword and grabbed Asuka by the shoulders.

My transformation disappeared, and I clutched my stomach. Fall came over to me, and helped me up. “Hey, kiddo. Don’t die yet, okay?”

“Not planning on it, doc,” I growled. As soon as he got me to my feet, I uncapped the gold Memoka, and swiped it across the Time Driver. “Henshin!” I shouted.

“Shit, kiddo,” Fall said, diving out of the way from the leaping golden transformation light. “Don’t do anything stupid!”

“Too late!” I said, drawing the golden Memoka’s Prism Claws. Asuka and Winter were grappling on the ground. I wouldn’t have expected it from either of them, they were both usually so prim and proper. Asuka punched Winter in the face, and Winter retaliated by slamming her horn into Asuka’s head. I walked over, pulled Asuka off of Winter, and punched her in the gut with the claws.

I think that was the first time one of my attacks truly deeply hurt Asuka. She hissed in pain, and clawed at my arm, trying to pull it out of herself. I obliged her by pulling them out the hard way, dragging the claws to the side of her body. She cried out and staggered back, gold scratches across her stomach. She leaned against a box and let out an ear splitting screech.

The remaining blots looked up, alarmed, and started shuffling towards her. Winter stood up quickly, and limped over to join us. The three of us attacked the blots that got close, but the ones that got past us bowed and touched Asuka’s outstretched hands. They disappeared into her, and the bright scars we had left on her became covered by ink.

“Is she getting bigger?” Fall asked, shoving away another blot.

“They’re healing her,” Winter said.

“They’re recorrupting her,” I corrected her. “Keep as many of them away as you can,” I said, and took off towards Asuka, I tore a blot away from her and aimed my claws at Asuka’s face. She knocked my hand away easily, and punched me. I managed to block, but I skidded back. She advanced again, laughing as she did. Her expression was terrifying. She jabbed her fists at me, and it was all I could do to block. “She’s too fast now!” I said, “Guys, some cover please!”

“On it!” Winter shouted, and knocked over a massive stack of boxes at Asuka. I jumped away. Asuka knocked them aside like she was swatting flies. Asuka was turning her attention to Winter, so I had to hurry. I got out the pink Memoka. Asuka wailed on Winter. Winter blocked, barely moving back. Fall slashed Asuka across the back again, reopening the wound he had made before. Asuka spun around and broke his glaive in half, tossing it aside.

Fall let out a stream of swear words, and Winter kicked Asuka in the side to regain her attention. Fall was strong, but Winter’s armor was just more heavy duty than his was. I swiped the pink Memoka across the Time Driver, “Henshin!” I said, and the belt started playing koto music.

“Sakura in full bloom! Come and see!” the belt announced, and a flurry of pink blossoms of light swirled around me.

Now.

I didn’t have much time as Sakura. I ran, suddenly right in front of Asuka, blocking a punch meant for Winter. I delivered rapid fire punches back at the bird ReMare, and this time she was the one on the defensive. I delivered a powerful kick and she went flying through a garage door with a loud crash.

I followed her out, activating the Prism Sakura and sending a shower of pink sakura throwing stars at her. Asuka struggled to her feet and jumped less than gracefully up on top of a truck. She knelt, breathing hard. “I watched you fight the otter turtle in this form. All I have to do is stay out of your way, and you’ll be out of energy soon enough. Ha!”

“True. But are you fast enough to do that?” I asked, suddenly next to her on the truck. She looked up at me in surprise and scrambled away, jumping to the top of the building. I threw stars at her as she ran. Many of them missed. She was still really fast. But Sakura was fast too. I jumped onto the roof after, scrambling to clear the ledge. She took that opportunity to grab me by the cape again.

“Your little friends aren’t here to get you out of it this time,” she said, her tone going back to mocking sweetness now that she had the upper hand again. She put me in a headlock, “It won’t be much longer and you’ll run out of power, little butterfly.”

I reached up with the arm with the Prism Sakura wrapped around it. “Oh, don’t even bother to struggle. You’re so fragile, aren’t you? It wouldn’t take much to crush you like a bug,” She trilled. I did struggle a little then. It was getting hard to breathe, and I could tell the power was going to run out at any second. And when it did, I did not want her touching me.

I dug the sakura into her arm and dragged it across. She squawked indignantly, and loosened her grip. I grabbed her arm and threw her over me. She barely managed to land on her feet a few meters away. She was peppered with small pink scars, and moving a bit erratically as she lurched back at me, talons on her hands raised to attack.

“Sakura, Falling down. Bye bye!” The belt chimed, and I was back to being just regular Kimura Mei. I wasted no time. I got out the white marker, the one given to me by a shining giant lady in a forest. She had named me champion. I had lost it and regained it, and almost lost it again.

It didn’t matter, I was Year. “Henshin!” I called out, and swiped it across the Time Driver, still at my waist.

“This is your YEAR! Let’s go! Let’s go! Yeah!” Maybe it was just me, but the music it played along with its normal announcement seemed to rock just a bit harder. White light swirled around me, knocking back Asuka’s attack. I walked out of the light, my white armor glinting in the sunlight, and attacked. I caught her hand and punched her. She stumbled back. The Time Driver and Memoka glowed white, and I jumped up into the air. “VANISHING POINT!” I shouted, and dove down with one leg outstretched, light flaring around me. I connected to Asuka’s chest and she shattered in an explosion of colorful light. The rest of her, the blots, melted away into a massive puddle of ooze. I landed on one knee, breathing hard. In front of me, the ink rippled and a large yellow orb emerged slowly, floating in front of me.

“It’s okay, Asuka. It’ll be okay,” I said, and reached out for her.

“Erase, bye bye!” The belt chimed, and my armor disappeared. I fell forward, arm outstretched. Everything went blank.

I woke up a little while later to something tugging at my braid, “Stop it,” I mumbled, “don't bother me.”

It didn’t stop. It actually got more insistent. I grumbled and sat up slowly. Sharky bobbed in front of me, giving me a toothy grin. “Oh, hey there. You’re okay.”

“Jiro-chan patched her up. And now it’s my turn to patch you up. Are you alright?” Aki was kneeling in front of me, grinning. I glanced around. Meiko was there too, one hand on her hip. Rou stood farther back, leaning against an air vent and pretending he was too cool to be worried.

“Where did Asuka go?” I asked, suddenly realizing I didn’t have her and I couldn’t see her. I looked around desperately.

“Calm down, kiddo. Jiro has her,” Aki said, putting a hand on my shoulder.

“So we did it,” I said, sighing in relief. Asuka was no longer corrupted. “We beat a High ReMare.”

“I didn’t think it could be done, but you did it,” Aki said, beaming at me.

“You did good, Meiki,” Meiko said, smiling.

“We all did. Are you guys alright?” I asked, struggling to stand up.

“I don’t know, are you going to answer my question first?” Aki said, standing up too. “You’re the one who transformed four times.”

“She’s going to be stubborn about it, Aki Aki.” Meiko rolled her eyes and walked forward, punching me very gently on the shoulder. “Meiki, we’re fine. Sore and tired, but it’s nothing that rest won’t fix.”

“Oh. Good,” I said, dazed. “You were pretty cool back there… Wait…” I furrowed my eyebrows at her. “Aki Aki?” I asked incredulously.

“We fought together. It’s a cute nickname, don’t you think?” Meiko said, flashing Aki a smile that I suspected was more mischievous than it looked. He shrugged and looked as confused as I felt.

“I’m not gonna argue with her,” he said, raising his hands in defeat, “and you still haven’t answered me.”

I paused and thought about it. It hurt to move, and I felt dead tired. I probably would have slept a week on the roof if Sharky hadn’t woken me up. I was also starving. “I want to eat like, a hundred hamburgers,” I said slowly.

Meiko laughed, covering her mouth. Aki grinned and said, “Well, we can arrange that. Let’s get you back to my place.” He slung an arm around me in a way that could look comradely, but was also supportive. Rou hurried over to help, since Aki was considerably shorter than me.

Later we sat around in Rou’s lab. Aki had plastered me with cool compresses and bandaged me up, as it turned out I did have a few small cuts from Asuka’s attacks. Rou worked on downloading data from our Drivers as we sat on his couch and ate our fill of burgers and French fries, freshly made by Aki. Meiko ate more than what I had ever seen her eat, explaining that transformation had taken a lot out of her. I think it might have been that Aki’s food was just that good.

“I can’t believe how well we all fought together,” Aki said, sighing and leaning back against the couch.

“It’s really cool to have a team,” I agreed, reaching for another burger. “I’m sorry I doubted you, Meiko. You were really cool back there.”

“It’s fine. I would have said the same thing if the roles were reversed,” she shrugged, and took a sip of tea.

“Are you sure? I think you would have been like ‘oh yes, please become a cute brave strong hero so I can slobber all over you,’” Aki raised the pitch of his voice in a mimicry that was frankly ridiculous and didn’t sound much like Meiko at all. Meiko punched him in the shoulder. “Ow! That hurt!”

“Don’t say stupid things then, Aki Aki,” she said in a light tone.

“It’s true though,” Aki grumbled under his breath, earning him a glare that quickly broke into a grin from Meiko. Louder he said, “If we’re going to have team, we ought to have a name.”

“We already have one,” Meiko said, sounding confused.

Rou joined us on the couch, and nodded. “We do,” he said, snagging a few fries.

“What? We do?” Aki asked, looking back and forth between both of them. “No one told me!”

I thought about it for a second, “The Mei Brigade, right?” Meiko and Rou glanced at me, surprised. “What? Aki and Rou’s family names start with Mei too,” I said defensively. “And if we were friends in high school, they probably lumped you in with Meiko and me.”

“No, that’s right. I’m just surprised you realized it so quickly,” Rou said.

“Exactly, I thought I was going to have to explain,” Meiko added.

“Are you guys making fun of me?” I complained, taking a bite of the burger. “Cause it sounds like you’re calling me stupid.”

“Making fun of you! They’re clearly making fun of me! I didn’t get it at all,” Aki whined back, “And you did!” he stressed the ‘you’ part a little too much. Meiko and Rou laughed.

“Hey!” I said, pretending to be offended. “As the President of the Mei Brigade, I object to that remark!”

“President? I didn’t vote for you!” Aki sputtered, “Who voted for you?! I demand a recount!”

“Me,” Meiko said, and rested her head against my shoulder.

“Me too. Both parts of me. That’s three,” Rou said, raising his hand. “She’s the champion.”

“Jiro-chaaaan, that’s not fair at all!” Aki whined, “You don’t get two votes!”

“I vote for me too, so you’re still outnumbered,” I said, and yawned.

“Fine, but I will campaign hard and oust you next election!” Aki said, pointing dramatically at me.

“Whatever you say, Aki,” I said, leaning my head on the top of Meiko’s. I was full, happy and so very tired. We all ended up falling asleep there on the couch together.

 


	10. Lethe

“Do you really want to go back to work already? We could probably ask for some more time off.” I asked as I braided my hair. “Oscar doesn't mind filling in.”

Meiko stopped tapping her foot for a moment, and then continued. She was waiting for me on my desk chair near the doorway. “We’re going back to work. There’s no reason not to,’ she said.

“Aren’t you tired? It’s only been two days since we fought a High ReMare,” I asked, looking at her incredulously. I had bounced back fairly quickly this time, but I was still sore.

“Yes. But you talk as naturally as you breathe. If you can do that here, you can sit in the booth and do it too,” she said as my front door opened.

“That’s true,” Aki said, stepping out of his shoes as he walked into my kitchen. “Good morning!” He carried two white shopping bags.

“It is not! Why are you even here?” I asked. I wasn't annoyed about that. I had given him a key and an open invitation. That he came in and agreed with Meiko when I was trying to get her to be sensible was irritating.

“Because of love and justice!” Aki said, posing like he had just finished transforming into Fall. Meiko ducked unconcernedly to avoid getting hit in the head with a bag.

“What does that have to do with anything?” I asked. “What’s that?”

“It’s breakfast. You’re welcome, kiddo,” Aki said, and put the bags down on the table with an elaborate flourish. He winced and came up awkwardly.

“Don’t push it, Aki Aki,” Meiko said firmly.

“Oh, so he shouldn’t push it, but you and I should?” I grumbled, biting a hair tie to avoid dropping the end of my braid.

“Why are you complaining anyway? You were happy enough when you answered the door,” Meiko said.

“Cause you remembered to come get me before work…” I muttered, and busied myself with tying off the end of the braid. “I’m more worried about you… I passed out a lot when I first started fighting…”

“She says that like she didn’t pass out after fighting Asuka,” Aki said, casually getting into my cupboards to get coffee started. “You do that a lot, actually. It’s got Jiro kinda worried. I never really had that problem.”

“Didn’t Anubis kick you into a tree?” I snapped at him, struggling to put a purple vest on.

“Yeah, and that hurt like a truck,” he agreed, “But when you’re out it’s like for an entire day. Even if you're not actually hurt that badly.”

“That’s only happened a couple of times!” I said, buttoning up my vest and going over to them.

“Arachne, Anubis, The Abomination, Natasha, Asuka…” He ticked off their names on his fingers. “I think those are actually most of the monsters you’ve fought, isn’t it? At least that we can remember,” Aki said, glancing at Meiko. She nodded and he started setting out plates.

“That’s… Natasha was because of Asuka!” I objected. Aki grinned and shared a glance with Meiko and set out massive pastries on each of the plates. “Why are you smiling like a cat with a fish?!” I demanded, looking back and forth between the two of them.

“You’ve proved my point, haven’t you? You’re going to chatter either way,’ Meiko said, smiling up at me.

I stared at her, “But… you…”

“If I did not think I could sit in the booth enjoying your company, I wouldn’t suggest it,” Meiko said simply.

That mollified me. “Fine,” I muttered, sitting down and taking an annoyed bite of the pastry. It had a crackly maple glaze that crunched and then melted away in my mouth. I softened. As expected of Aki’s cooking, it was really good.

Aki leaned forward, grinning. “Well?” he asked, clearly looking for praise.

I made an effort to bristle again, not wanting to give him the satisfaction, “Whatever. I like cream filled with sprinkles better.”

Aki’s grin grew more obnoxious and he deposited a second pastry that matched my description on my plate. “Your wish is my command, kiddo.”

“Don’t call me that,” I muttered, taking a bite out of the second one. I couldn’t help myself. “Mmm… It’s…” I caught his expression, and sighed, “They’re both delicious, you jerk. Don’t you have something better to be doing right now?”

“Nah. Which one do you think Jiro would like?” He asked, depositing a few more on my plate.

“Are you using her as a test subject?” Meiko asked, sounding serious, but her eyes glittered in amusement.

“Never!’ Aki said, not even attempting to make it sound earnest. He sprang up to pour a couple mugs of coffee. I noticed that he cringed and put a lot of weight on the counter.

“Rou would probably like something cherry flavored,” I said, as if I hadn’t noticed, “It is kind of his thing.”

“See, that’s what I thought, but Jiro said to stop making fun of him and go bother you, so here I am!” He set down a mug of coffee in front of me and Meiko, keeping one for himself and sitting down.

“We are on the way to work,” Meiko reminded him.

“I know! I mean, what he actually told me was that four pastries was more than enough for breakfast and that I should go tell you to stop by later,” Aki said, shrugging and eating one of the maple ones, “I thought you’d like a matcha one, Meiko,” he said. Meiko glanced at him and took the suggested green tea pastry and took a dainty bite.

“It is good,” Meiko said. “How many flavors did you end up making?” She eyed him suspiciously.

“Just five. The other one is super spicy curry,” Aki said.

I was in the middle of stuffing a fifth pastry in my mouth. “Mhmph?!” I swallowed, and my eyes watered. I liked spicy food, but I had expected sweet and it had pulled the rug out from under me. “Why would you put that in with all the sweet ones?!” I gasped, jumping up to pour myself a cold drink.

Akito shrugged with a sly smile. “It’s a mystery.”

Meiko finished her pastry and stood up. “Meiki.”

“That time already?” I asked. She nodded. “Sorry, Aki. We gotta go. You’re welcome to rest here, if you want.”

“Fine, fine! I see how it is! Leave me behind!” He dramatically draped a hand against his forehead.

“Get some rest, Aki.” I said, affectionately ruffling his hair before grabbing my bag.

“Yeah, yeah. I got it, boss,” Akito said, lazily waving as we left.

“Good morning, everyone!” I called out as I walked into the radio station. Meiko echoed my greeting as she followed me in.

The usual chorus of “Good Morning” was absent. We didn’t even get the halfhearted “Mornin” that we sometimes got when everyone was tired or busy. We got silence and stares instead.

“ReMare?” I whispered, and I reached for my Time Driver.

“Tch,” Meiko said, sucking air through her teeth. She slipped off her shoes and put on her inside shoes like she was entirely unconcerned by our coworkers oddness. She hurried to get out of the way as quickly as possible, though. She didn’t like that sort of awkward confrontation.

I lowered the Time Driver, and walked in slowly. “Guys? What’s up?” I asked, glancing around the office. “Did something happen?”

“No, of course not… Good morning, ladies,” Nawata-san said hastily, and turned back to her computer. That seemed to break whatever odd spell lay over our coworkers. Most of them muttered good morning and shuffled back to work.

“That was weird,” I said to Meiko, switching my shoes.

“They haven’t seen us since Sharky...” She hesitated.

I knew why she was hesitating. Sharky had fought valiantly to protect me, and Rou had stabbed her when she was weak. And I had been willing to sacrifice Meiko’s memories to defend Sharky. I had some complicated feelings about that. Shame being at the forefront. I didn’t like it how it had happened, but at least now Sharky wasn’t corrupted by blots. “Since she was put into a new body,” I said, firmly.

“Well, they remember now, don’t they?” Meiko said practically, as she went into the break room.

“Remember? Oh, right. Year fought Sharky here… But why look at us weird then?” I said, confused. “Hi, Oscar,” I added. The French-Japanese afternoon host nodded in response.

“Because you’re Year,” Meiko said, and shoved my shoulder. “I told them, remember?”

“Ah. Right,” I said, dazed. I had gotten used to people either not believing or not remembering it. “So much for a secret identity, I guess.” I hadn't even tried to keep it a secret, except from Meiko, because it felt better to have a reason not to be recognized beyond memory loss. Even that hadn't lasted long.

“I’m sorry,” Meiko said, pouring two cups of tea. “More tea, Oscar?” She held up the tea pot for him.

“Oui, merci. And speaking of that terrible event, Mademoiselle Kimura, I wanted to apologize. It seems I got in the way of your fight, thinking I could escape. It was foolish of me, and it seemed like you got hurt because of it,” Oscar said, tilting his head down like a small bow.

“It’s fine.” I waved my hands to dismiss the apology. “I just wish I could have protected everyone better,” I said, feeling my cheeks burn.

“No, I insist on making it up to you, in some small way! Perhaps I could treat you for lunch today. It’s just a small token of my appreciation,” Oscar said.

“Oh, I couldn’t! Honestly, it wasn’t a problem,” I said, although I was awfully tempted to take him up on it. Knowing him, he’d pick someplace fancy and extra delicious, and then I’d get to eat it for free.

Meiko glanced at me, an eyebrow raised. She knew me well enough that she was well aware that my brain was full of buttery crab and freshly baked bread. She didn’t say anything though.

“Well, if not as an apology, then how about as a friend? I’d really appreciate hearing more about what happened,” Oscar said, “I remember of course, what happened with that terrible shark monster, but it’s still hard to believe.”

“Well… If that’s the case, then of course we'll go to lunch with you,” I said, and was unable to hide my eagerness. Meiko sipped her tea to hide a smile. “If that’s okay with you, Meiko-chan?” I added, “I know I talked about going to get yakiniku with you this morning, but...”

Oscar paused before apologizing. “Oh, I’m sorry! Did you have plans?” Oscar asked, “Of course, Mademoiselle Koda is also welcome to join us! She certainly kept a cool head and kept us safe before you showed up to fight that brute! I was thinking Etoile by the train station, but if you wanted to go to yakiniku…”

Meiko sipped her tea. “Etoile sounds lovely, Oscar.”

“We can go to yakiniku another time!” I said, with a grin.

“Mm,” Meiko said noncommittally, but flashed me a smile. It wasn’t much of a hardship for her to go to a fancy restaurant instead of grilling up a ton of meat.

“Tres Bien!” Oscar said.

“Meiki-san! Okuda-san needs you in her office,” Nawata-san called from the main office.

“Good luck,” Meiko said, like she often did when I used to get called to the principal’s office back in school. “We’re on in fifteen.”

“I know. Catch you later, Oscar!” I said, and gulped down the rest of my tea before heading to Okuda-san’s office. It was a tidy room with the walls covered in signed pictures of celebrities. They all looked very impressive, although my favorite celebrity pictures were the selfies on my phone of the time where I had managed to convince the members of Karashi Lemons to go to karaoke with me and Meiko.

“Good morning, boss!” I said cheerfully, bowing slightly and standing in front of her desk.

“Morning. Sit down, would you?” Okuda-san gestured at a plush couch across from the desk. I obeyed.

“I’m on air in a few minutes,” I reminded her.

“I know. I wanted to talk to you about this Year business,” she said, and it sounded like serious business.

“Alright,” I said, starting to get worried. She had already sent me home earlier in the month when Meiko’s memory loss had thrown me off my usual charming radio groove. I couldn’t afford to get fired, although I supposed Aki would let me work in his restaurant. It would give me more time for fighting monsters. But then it would leave Meiko by herself and I don’t think she enjoyed that much. “I’m sorry, if it’s-“

“I for one, think it’s brilliant!” Okuda-san interrupted me.

I nearly fell off the chair. “What?” I recovered quickly, “Oh! Right! Of course!” I chuckled nervously.

“Did you seriously think I’d fire you for that?” she asked, giving me an amused look. “The ratings were great, and I’ve already got plans for Year to do a meet and greet and signings… Do you think you could pose for a Boss Coffee advertisement this month?”

“Whoa…” I rubbed the back of my neck, stunned. Becoming the radio's mascot was not even on the list of things I thought this meeting was going to be about. It wasn't like I didn't like the thought of Year getting that kind of attention, and showing off how cool I could be. I was a very flashy radio DJ after all. But it didn't set right with me.“I don’t know if many people actually remember Year, though? And it’s not like, super easy to transform, so I don’t know if it’s a good idea to do it for fun,” I explained. “Plus I think the monsters might think it’s a challenge and attack.”

“Hm, I see.” She paused to consider my concerns. Or pretend to anyway. Almost immediately, she continued, “Well, I prepared for that!” She stood up and dramatically opened up a closet. Inside was a Year suit. Or a cheap imitation of one. It looked like it was made of spandex and an old motorcycle helmet, with the details painted on. “We can use this!”

“What.” I stared at it. I couldn’t form a more coherent objection.

“Now, I know what you’re thinking! You’re a busy woman, doing radio, and saving people from monsters and such! And who is going to interview Year? Why, you and Meiko-san would have to do it, right? So I’ll get one of the interns to wear it, and you won’t have to worry about it at all!”

“When did you?” I started. It wasn't what I wanted to say, but my brain was still reeling.

“I know a guy who works quickly,” she said pleasantly.

“I still think that it’ll be too,“ I started, finally able to gather up an objection.

“And of course I’ll wave the cost of repairs to the office after your little fight. Did you see that some of the sound wall was damaged? It looks like foam, but it is surprisingly expensive!” she said, with a smiling edge of threat to her tone.

I cringed. I did know how expensive the radio equipment was.  “I’ll think about it…” I said reluctantly.

“Great! It’ll be perfect! Here’s the press release for the meet and greet.” She shoved a clear file with a document inside into my hands. “Now, go! Get! You’ve got a show to do!” Okuda-san said, shooing me out the door just as Nawata-san was bringing in tea for our meeting. Nawata-san sighed and turned around and took the tea back to her desk.

Dazed, I walked back to the radio booth. Meiko was already getting things set up. “Well, that was weird.”

“Not in trouble?” she asked.

“No? Well, maybe? I think she’s maybe blackmailing me to be our mascot?” I said, and handed her the press report.

She read it over, “It doesn’t sound that bad. Just show up and do your dorky pose and leave.” “Hey! It’s not dorky! And she like, wants an intern to do it in some terrible knockoff costume…”

“So it is an image thing?” She said, amused.

“No!” At least not entirely anyway. It felt incredibly weird that the producer had just randomly made a knock-off Year costume. “I’m worried it’s going to get an intern killed.”

She patted my shoulder. “We would be there to protect them. And if more people know about Year, they might be more careful around ReMares,” Meiko said, “It’s up to you though.”

“I guess.” I sighed.

“Are you ready?” Meiko asked, handing over my headphones.

“Yeah.” She held up her fingers to count down turning on the mics. When she reached zero, I said, “Good morning, Oara! We’re you’re hosts, Kimura Mei.”

“And Koda Mei! Welcome to FM 98.4 Mei Brigade!” Meiko added.

“Now, some of you might have recently remembered that Meiko and I have been good friends for a long time. And you might also be remembering being attacked by a particularly loud Shark Monster,” I said.

“It was certainly a surprise to me,” Meiko said calmly.

“Well, don’t worry, um…” I glanced down at the press release script, trying to see how the boss wanted me to play this. “The Kamen Rider Year has defeated the terrible…” I didn’t think Sharky was terrible at all. I sighed, “Shark monster and retrieved your precious memories!” I tried to end the last bit on a happier note.

“If you’d like to see the city’s newest hero, he’ll be visiting Dream City Mall next Saturday morning for an interview and to meet the public,” Meiko read dutifully off the script.

“He?” I mouthed at Meiko. She shrugged and pointed out that the press release clearly referred to Year as male. Okuda-san knew who the real Year was, why would she do that? Especially since she had to go out of her way to use gendered pronouns in Japanese. I scowled and rolled my eyes, before continuing on with the script with my cheerful radio voice. “Come on out and show support for Oara’s own Kamen Rider!”

“I don’t know if you’ve met Year yet, folks, but what a cool hero! I think... I might have a bit of a crush,” Meiko gushed, winking at me.

I blushed hard, and felt a small kernel of jealousy flare in the pit of my stomach, left over from when I had been certain Meiko only liked me for Year because of her memory loss. I laughed it off awkwardly. “Y-yeah, Year is cool,” I said. “You met Year, right? When the Shark ReMare attacked the radio station, right?” I said, trying to shift the conversation.

“Oh yes, I did. It was very impressive, watching Year fight. Year was very strong and cool,” she said, smiling like a cat with cream.

“R-right!” I said. I was not doing a good job at dealing with the complicated mix of emotions that afflicted me. I did like that she was calling me cool, and it was heady, if embarrassing, to be flirted with in public. Added to the weird seed of jealousy that it was directed at Year and not at me, it left my wheels spinning without purchase. So. I avoided dealing with it all together. “How about the weather, Meiko?” I asked abruptly, unable to keep the sharp edge out of my professionally sunny voice.

Meiko's eyes widened at me in surprise, but she didn't miss a beat. “Of course! Today it’s going to be sunny and it’s starting to get pretty warm! We’re looking at a high of 28 degrees and a low of 25! And now let’s take a music break with your Oara Morning DRIIIIIVE!” She switched the broadcast over to music.

I crumpled the press release and chucked it across the room, avoiding her gaze.

“Meiki, are you jealous?” Meiko asked, her head tilted curiously.

“No,” I said, and then immediately corrected myself when she gave me a puzzled look. “Yes. Look... When you didn't have your memories... There were times it felt like you just liked Year. And not me.”

“Oh,” Meiko said, covering her mouth in surprise. “I'm so sorry.” She reached out to put her hand on my arm. “That's not the case at all, Meiki. I just meant to get your mind off the meet and greet.” She struggled for a moment, her face going red, and her voice small, “I've liked you for a very very long time. I just... was not brave enough to say it.”

It eased the knot of feelings, replacing it with a flock of elated butterflies. “You did?”

She nodded, and then, in a more annoyed tone said, “To be fair, I did try though. You're a little oblivious to flirting.”

This surprised me further. “I am?”

“You are. You do realize Oscar invited you on a lunch date?” she asked, “And now you're jealous of yourself?”

“He said as friends!” I objected. “And... the Year thing is different.”

“I know.”

I struggled with the thought of Oscar flirting with me. It just didn't seem right. “Are you jealous?”

“Of Oscar? You didn't know he was flirting with you.”

That stung for some reason, so I lashed out. “And what are you going to do when Year has tons of fan girls?”

“The same thing I do now.” She shrugged, seeming unconcerned. “You already have fan girls, Meiki.”

I opened my mouth to object and remembered that we were famous radio hosts. I got fan mail. I shut my mouth. I had not thought of that. “That doesn’t bother you?” I asked, a little disappointed.

“I’ve seen what you’d do just to remain friends with me. I’m not worried. And if someone else makes you happy too...” She smiled and shrugged. “I am not jealous of Aki Aki or Rou either. Aki Aki made sure to tell me the other day that you planned a wedding when he was staying with you.”

“We did not! He’s just good at house stuff!” I sputtered, blushing again. I did like him, and I was aware of his flirting, but it felt like a game.

“I told you, I don’t mind. He’s amusing,” she paused, “Oscar does not seem like your type, however.”

“Do I have a type if I apparently like you, Rou and Aki?” I asked, exasperated.

“Sure you do,” Meiko said, and then didn’t elaborate.

I threw my hands up in the air and turned the mics back on to continue the show. We managed to get through most of it with minimal further teasing, as we moved on to other topics.

“Stay tuned for our Lunch Hour Music special! This has been FM 98.4 Mei Brigade!” Meiko said cheerfully at the end of our show.

“We’re living in color!” I added with some cool sound effects.

Oscar was waiting in the hallway. After we left our booth, he said “Bonjour! Let us go eat!”

Eating sounded so much simpler than feelings. “I’m so hungryyyy!” I whined, leaning dramatically against Meiko. It was a feat, given that she’s almost ten centimeters shorter than me.

“Shall we take the bus? We came here on Meiki’s new motorcycle,” Meiko explained, pushing me enough to get my weight off her, but not enough to push me away.

“But of course! Meiki, I didn’t know you liked motorcycles,” Oscar said, raising his eyebrows at me. “What kind is it? A Harley?”

“It’s custom, I think?” I said. I didn’t know much about actual motorcycles, and Meiko's revelations about Oscar's intentions made me feel awkward. I still didn't see it. He was cute, in a sort of exotic way, with wavy blond hair and startlingly green eyes. He was going to feed me, which would endear me to nearly anyone. But I didn't really know him outside of a professional setting, and I couldn't see how he'd like me. But then, I apparently had the romantic awareness of a sandwich. I set those thoughts aside. It wasn't important. He was a coworker, and a friend. And I was happy with who I liked now. “A friend made it for me. It's super high tech. Like, it does stuff I didn't think was even possible. It's in this little device here.” I pulled out the Pair Device. I was bragging a little, to make up for not knowing about Harley motorcycles. “And it transforms a regular bicycle into a motorcycle. It's amazing.”

“O la la, that is amazing,” Oscar said, impressed. “If it's true, of course.”

I felt a surge of pride for Rou. “It is pretty cool! I’ll show you.” I paused, because that sounded like I wanted to show him now. I did not. I focused on food. “After we eat. I’m starving!”

“Don’t worry, it’s not too far away,” Oscar said.

“That’s what I like to hear,” I said.

“So, I heard the boss’s plan about Year,” Oscar said as we crossed the street.

“Yeah. Not much I can do about it right now,” I sighed. “I feel bad for whatever intern she picks to do it though.”

“Are you kidding? We’ve got a huge pile of intern resumes just of kids that want to work with you on your show. You’ll be making someone’s dream come true. I know I would have jumped at a chance to play hero and actually get famous for it.” Oscar said. “Wouldn’t you, Meiko?”

“Mm,” Meiko said with a quite smile. She had jumped at it, to protect me.

“I guess not, being a lady and all,” Oscar said, taking her answer as a negative.

“I’m a lady too,” I said, annoyed.

“Yes but…” He struggled to find words that wouldn’t invite me to punch him. “You’re like one of the boys.”

I wrinkled my nose at him, and leaned against the bus stop shelter.

“She’s a lady, so whatever she does is ladylike,” Meiko said calmly. “Including how she kicks monsters in the face.”

“That’s just kicking…” I said, trailing off as I noticed a tall young lady staring at a wedding dress in the department store window.

“Right, of course. I didn’t mean to offend you,” Oscar said, half apologizing awkwardly.

“It’s fine. I know I’m not super girly,” I said. I didn’t usually even mind being called one of the boys. Meiko called me handsome sometimes and I thought it was a fairly accurate way to describe me. “Sorry, I'm just annoyed that the press release said that Year is a man.”

“Ah, I see! Yes, that was a little odd. Perhaps she has an intern in mind already though,” he said.

“Maybe… That girl has been here since this morning, hasn’t she?” I asked. I remembered passing her on the way in. She stood out, with a dark green pea coat. And she was very tall for a girl. It felt strange to see another Japanese girl that was close to the same height as me.

“What girl?” Meiko asked, and I tilted my head at her. “Oh, now that you mention it…”

The bus pulled up. “Oh! That’s our bus. Allons-y!” Oscar said, and climbed onto the bus. Meiko followed him. I took a step to follow, but when I glanced back at the girl, I caught something inky black dripping off the dress in the window.

“I’ll catch up!” I shouted, and darted away from the bus.

“Wait!” Meiko called, but the bus driver closed the doors and sped off.

I winced. She’d be annoyed with me later for that. I walked over to the girl. “Hey, are you okay?”

“Hm? Oh, yes. I’m just looking at this dress. It’s beautiful isn’t it?” she said.

“It is,” I said solemnly, staring hard to see if I could find where the ink had gone. “Have you been here all day?” I asked. “I saw you here this morning too.”

“Oh, no. I just stop here on my way to work. It would be so lovely to wear this, don’t you think? It’s too bad it would never fit…” She sighed.

“That kind of stuff gets altered to fit all the time. I think it’d be lovely,” I said. She glanced at me like I didn’t know what I was talking about. “Is there someone you like?” I asked.

“Yes, but I don’t think he’d ever be interested in me.” She smiled bitterly.

“Why not? You’re really cute,” I asked, surprised.

“Guys don’t like girls who are taller than them,” she sighed.

“I don’t…” Was that true? I shook my head. It didn't matter. “What’s your name?”

“Reina.”

“Reina-san. I don’t think that’s true. I’m tall too, and I've got someone special.” Maybe even several? It was still kind of weird to think about what Meiko had said about Rou and Aki. “And you’re really cute!” I said, hands on my hips.

“Then maybe it’s my personality.” Reina sighed. I wanted to shake her. “Whatever. It doesn't even matter. I should head to work.” She checked her watch. “Noon?! It was eight the last time I checked! Jeeze, today is the worst…”

“I think something might be messing with your memories. I’m here to help, so please stay calm,” I said, and looked closely at the window.

“I have to go! I’m going to get fired!” Reina said, picking up her suitcase at her feet.

“Please wait, I don’t know what memories is took. If you’re in trouble at work, I’ll talk to your boss myself,” I said. I wasn't sure how well that conversation would work out, but I said it confidently anyway.

“No, no! I have to…“ She faltered and caught glimpse of the wedding dress again, and sighed. “It’s so beautiful, isn’t it?” Something in the shadow stirred.

That seemed like enough evidence to me. I got out the Time Driver and placed it against my waist. I uncapped the white marker and swiped it across the Time Driver. “Henshin!” I shouted, and swiped the marker across the Time Driver.

“This is your YEAR! Let’s go, let’s go! Yeah!” The belt chimed, and white light swirled around me. My white armor appeared on me.

“I’m living in color!” I said, and did my pose.

Reina stared at the window, and sighed wistfully.

I staggered. I had thought that would have gotten at least a little bit of a reaction. I gathered myself up. “Alright! Move back please!” I said, and gently guided Reina away from the window. I jumped up and kicked the window. Glass shattered around me, and Reina yelped.

“Help! Police!” she shouted, “A monster!”

“No, I am here to help!” I said, frustrated. “I’m a hero! HE. RO.”

Black ooze bubbled up under the dress, and formed a mantis monster. She had long sleeves, like she was wearing a fancy kimono. Thankfully the only colors she had glowing from her inky black form were orange and some small stripes of green. I didn’t think I could fight another High ReMare right then, especially without backup.

Despite that, I was really wishing Meiko hadn’t ended up on the bus.

“Why did you ruin my display? I worked really hard on it!” the mantis said, brushing glass off of the wedding dress. “Now I’ll have to get someone to fix it and it’ll take forever.”

“You’ve been eating this girl’s memories. I can’t let you do that,” I said, putting my fists up.

“What do you care? I’m doing her a favor!” she said, turning sharply to face me.

“She’ll lose her job or worse, if she just stands here forever,” I waved a hand at where Reina had been standing.

“She’s already lost what’s most important to her. And she knows coming here makes her forget about it, don’t you, Reina-chan?” the mantis called over to Reina.

“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Reina said, but she looked away awkwardly.

“She was engaged and he ran away with some cute little thing, didn’t he?” The mantis girl crooned, “You poor thing…”

Reina gasped and sobbed.

“Wait… So you’ve been taking away just enough of her memory to make her really miserable? That’s terrible! She can’t move on unless she deals with it,” I said.

“It’s none of your business if she chooses to give her memories to me!” The mantis swiped at me. I dodged out of the way and struck back with a punch. She locked her arm around my neck. “Do not take my prey away from me,” she hissed near my ear.

I grabbed at her to do a throw that would dislodge her from my neck. She slid back, and raised clawed hands at me. “Listen, surrender quietly, and it’ll be fine. My friend can give you an origami body until you don’t need a blot to survive. You won’t need to eat memories,” I said, circling her carefully, trying to get between Reina and her.

“I’m helping this poor girl!” the ReMare shouted, and lunged at me. She scratched at my armor, snapping her mandibles in my face. I held her by her shoulders, to keep her mouth a little bit farther away from me.

I raised up a knee into her gut, and it gave an unpleasant squelching sound.

A brief memory flitted across my mind. Reina standing at the altar, beautiful in her white gown. Her groom hasn’t shown up. Her friends whisper. His friends joke about him escaping her clutches. She runs off. She goes to the park where they had first met, crying and still in her wedding dress. He’s there, flirting with a petite woman. The woman makes a comment about how someone must have left the woman at the altar, and the man laughed. Reina at home, ripping the dress to shreds. That same wedding dress appeared in the window. Seeing it there made the memories of actually dating her fiancé and the terrible wedding slip away. But the feelings associated with the dress remained.

I stumbled back, and shook my head, trying to not let the memory distract me. I had a hard time understanding why anyone would want to forget something that had happened in their life. I knew it was painful, and I wished painful things didn’t happen. But… it was part of what made me who I was. And I didn’t like the feeling that I didn't know everything about myself.

“Prism Charge Complete!” My belt chimed. I pulled out the Prism Blade. “Prism Blade, Go! Go! Go!”

“Sorry, Reina. This might hurt,” I said, and ran towards the mantis. It caught on her long sleeves and a bright white scar appeared there. The Mantis hissed and backed away. She glanced at Reina, and then rushed to her side. I pivoted to try and block her path, but she ducked under the sword and gathered up the girl in her arms.

“I’ll take everything away. Just say the word,” the mantis muttered into her ear.

“Please…” Reina said.

“No! Think! If you can’t remember what hurt you, then someone just like that can hurt you again. I know it’s hard, but please!” I begged, thinking of how I had lost the Time Driver, and nearly had lost it again because I didn’t remember having it before.

“You don’t know!” Reina flung at me.

“I do though. I didn’t remember who my closest friends were. My best friend forgot we were friends. And it killed me, not knowing if things were real or made up! Our memories are important! Even the difficult ones!”

“Shut up!” She shouted, her voice cracking. “You just forgot happy things!”

“I did some stupid things because I forgot. It’s one thing if you forget naturally but… This isn’t right. And this mantis too! She’s being corrupted by a monster! She shouldn’t be like this!” I begged, “Let me help you both!”

“It’s too late anyway. I’m already taking all of her memories,” The mantis gloated. The bright orange markings grew more complicated over her body. “And if you come any closer, I’ll kill her outright! You wouldn’t mind that, would you, poor thing?” She asked, stroking Reina’s dark hair.

She leaned into the mantis’s touch.

I hesitated. If she lost all her memories, it was as good as being dead anyway. I thought I could strike before the mantis did, but… Well, her mandibles were awfully close to the girl’s neck.

In the distance, music played. I recognized it as Winter’s theme. “Alright, I won’t do anything. It’s your choice,” I said gently. I didn’t want her to make any sudden movements.

“That’s right, it is. You don’t have to remember,” The mantis crooned. I lowered my sword, although I itched to lob it through the mantis’s head.

Behind them, Winter appeared, her massive sword carefully aimed at the back of the mantis’s head. I nodded my head at her, and the mantis looked back to see why I had nodded. Her glittering eyes widened and she let go of the girl. Reina slumped to the floor, and the Mantis backed away. Winter knelt to cradle Reina's head. “Don’t worry, miss. We’ll help you.” She looked up to me. “Do your thing, Year.”

I nodded, and shouted “Vanishing point!” I put the Memoka back into the slot on the Time Driver and felt the rush of power through me. I jumped up and launched myself at the mantis. My foot connected and she splattered into a pile of black goo. An orange orb floated above the mess, and I picked it up carefully.

Reina regained consciousness with a sob, clinging desperately to Winter’s poncho. “How could he say he l-love me and t-that he wanted to marry me a-and then just… that girl… it hurts, it HURTS!” She sobbed, and pounded a fist on Winter’s armored chest.

“I know, I know… That says more about him than you, miss,” Winter said quietly. “And it’s possible he was also made to forget, by another ReMare.”

“Do you think so?” She asked, hope sparking. “Will he remember that he loves me now?”

I swiped my hand across my Time Driver. The belt chimed and said “Erase, bye bye!” and my armor disappeared. “It’s possible. What’s his name? If we can find him, we can find out.”

“His… His name is Oscar. He works at the radio station,” Reina sniffled.

“Oscar?” I said, surprised. Winter met my eyes for a moment.

“Do you know him?” Reina asked.

“Well, yeah,” I said. “I also work at the radio station. I was about to-“ I started, but Winter shook her head.

“What? Go on a date with him?!” She demanded, suddenly suspicious. “You said you had someone special.”

“No! We’re coworkers,” I objected, waving my hands as if I didn’t want to touch the topic. “Listen, I’ll ask him. If it comes to anything, I’ll get back to you. But… I don’t know. His memories might have been taken by a different monster, or… Well, I’d like to think he’s a good person, but maybe he isn't.”

“I don’t want to feel like this,” Reina muttered, rubbing tears from her face.

“I know, but you have to acknowledge that it hurts so that you can move on,” I said, which was clearly not the answer she wanted to hear from me.

“Shut up! This is your fault!” Reina snapped, and clung tighter to Winter.

“It’s not her fault,” Winter said gently, “The mantis manipulated you.”

“Listen, it wasn’t all bad, was it? There were good times too, right? If it truly wasn’t meant to be, then… Well, next time might not be the one either, but I doubt he’d leave you at the altar like that too. Eventually you’ll find the right person,” I said, feeling like the worst person to be giving relationship advice.

“Go away.” She sniffled, although she had calmed down a little.

“It’s true. Someone would be lucky to be with you,” I said. Reina relaxed her grip on Winter a little, but made no movement to get down.

“I don’t know…” Reina muttered.

“Be brave. Time will heal those wounds,” Winter said, and gently set her on her feet. “And if not, we’re here to help you.” Winter put a hand on her shoulder, and nodded, before walking away dramatically.

I was struck by how cool Winter was being, and it was all I could do not to rush over and give her a massive hug.

It seemed I wasn’t the only one who realized Winter was amazing, “Like a prince…” Reina whispered, staring off at Winter’s back.

“Yeah, Winter is the best,” I sighed, watching her go.

Reina glanced at me sharply, “I won’t lose to you.”

“What?” I said, confused. What did she mean by that? “Good?”

“Hmph,” Reina’s body language was closed off and unfriendly, but she did have a hint of a smile on her face. I sighed. As long as she wasn’t about to go running at the next Blot that stumbled across her path, it was fine.

“Meiki-chan! We need to get to our meeting!” Meiko called from across the street, in her normal plain clothes. “Let’s go!”

“Sorry, Reina. My friend is waiting for me. I gotta go.” I handed her my business card and saluted her as I strolled across the street.

One quick bike ride later, and Meiko and I made our way into Etoile.

“Sorry, we’re late,” I said, finding Oscar’s table.

“What in the world happened? Meiko got off the bus at the wrong stop, and you didn't even get on. I was worried I’d have to eat alone!”

“Ah, well. Year stuff,” I said, shrugging. “That girl needed help.”

“But Meiko?” Oscar asked.

“I wouldn’t miss a chance to see Year fight,” Meiko said primly, as she sat in her seat. “It’s amazing.”

Oscar laughed. “That’s right, you said you loved Year, didn’t you? Of course you’d want to see your hero fight! You could use that in your show too! That’s too funny!”

I rolled my eyes. “Hilarious.”

“Does she always take her character stuff this far? I wouldn’t have suspected that, she’s so serious!” Oscar went on.

“I am serious,” Meiko said blandly, glancing at me.

Right. Year stuff wasn’t finished. “Listen, Oscar, have you ever been engaged?”

“Are you proposing? How sudden!” Oscar asked lightly.

“No. I’m not. Reina said you left her at the altar,” I said, irritated.

He was silent for a moment. “I’m afraid I don’t know who that is,” Oscar said, slowly.

“Alright,” I said, “I thought that might be the case.”

“If that’s true, I’m sorry for it,” Oscar said, idly rearranging his silverware.

The conversation ended there, and we sat awkwardly while we waited for our food. When it finally came, I could have cheered. “Good! The food’s here,” I exclaimed in delight as beautiful plates of food graced our table. The presence of food thawed the icy silence, and we chatted about work and about the food. If there was an undercurrent of oddness, I blissfully ignored it in favor of stuffing my face.

I have said, before, that I am an idiot.

 


	11. Babel

“I don’t know. I feel like I made her problems worse,” I said, sprawled out on Rou’s leather couch as he worked on charging a Memoka with Asuka’s light. I held up the orange globe of light from the mantis, examining it.

“You saved that girl and defeated a ReMare. You didn’t even get hurt this time,” Rou said, distractedly, “What’s the problem?”

“She didn’t want to be saved. We were able to calm her down after, but…” I tugged at the end of my braid, trying to figure out how I felt about the situation. “I keep running into her this week and she’s always brushing past me or saying something rude.”

Rou set down his tools and turned to me. “It had to be done, one way or another,” he said. “It’s not good for ReMares to be infected with the blots any more than it is good for people to lose their memories.”

“Yeah, but people do forget stuff naturally too,” I said,“And if they really wanted to forget something…”

“You’d still eventually have to defeat the ReMare that took the memories, and then things get confusing and weird. It’s up to her to recover.” Rou said, returning his attention back to his work.

“I guess…”

“What’s up?” Aki said, as he barged through the door with a tray of baked goods.

“She’s second guessing things again,” Rou said, not looking up.

“It’s a valid concern!” I shot back. Rou made a noise and shook his head. "Remember how I said that Reina girl didn't want to be saved? Now it's like she hates me," I explained, gently releasing the orange orb to hover over the coffee table. “Maybe she was happier before.”

"You did the same for me, didn't you? I didn't want to remember why I wanted to be Autumn. I was happier before too," Aki pointed out, setting the tray on the coffee table and flopping down on my feet.

I lifted my head, alarmed. "...Do you hate me for it?" I asked. I hadn’t thought so, but he could be hard to read sometimes.

He rested his arms on my knees and leaned on them, staring down at me, "For that? No. That you're getting another upgrade? Yes. You're the worst." he winked at me, and I rolled my eyes.

"I am the Bright Lady's chosen one," I reminded him. “Of course I get another upgrade.”

"You're lucky you get to fight at all, Aki," Rou said. "Somehow whenever I make another Driver, it ends up being used by somebody else.”

Aki blew him a kiss. “We all know your first priority is protecting your idiot friends.”

Rou grunted and didn't respond. Instead he directed his next words to me. “And you said it yourself, Meiki. You're her chosen one. It’s your job to purify the ReMares and protect people from them. That's it.”

"No, no! Let me put it into terms she'll understand!" Aki grinned, excitedly hitting my knee. "Say you’re a firefighter! You're here to put out the fires, right? If you also drove the ambulance, did the surgery, and prosecuted whoever started the fire, you’d never actually get anything done! Plus there's no telling if you'd actually be good at all that other stuff. So you just gotta do your job, right?"

"How does that make more sense than what I said?" Rou asked.

I had to laugh. It hadn’t been that long since my complicated metaphors had completely baffled Aki. "No, I suppose Aki's right... I'll do my best." I said. I still wasn't entirely sure it was right. It felt like I should at least try to fix damage caused by my actions. But doing what I could seemed like enough for now. I shoved him off my knees so that I could grab a curry bread off the tray. I took a bite, "Mhph, This is good." he had toned down the spice from the ones he had given me last week and they were much easier to eat.

"Don't eat them all! I've got to sell those!" Akito swatted a second bun out of my hands. "I brought them up here to get help packaging." he thrust a pair of plastic gloves and a packet of cute plastic bags that were mostly clear, but had small autumn leaves printed all over them. "Get to work."

"Fiiiine," I grumbled, and sat up to help him. We worked in silence for a while.

"Something is still bothering you." Rou said, sighing and spinning in his chair to watch us.

"No, nothing!" I said, shaking my head. I was dreading the event coming up later in the day, but I didn't particularly want Akito and Rou to show up. Mostly because Akito would pretend like the fake was me, and be over dramatic and dumb about meeting "Year" and I'd have to hear about it for ages.

Aki and Rou both looked at each other and Aki shrugged. “Alright. Don’t struggle with stuff by yourself, alright?” Aki said.

“You say after teasing me about worrying about the person I saved…” I grumbled.

“It is my solemn duty to point out when you’re being silly,” Aki said in a fake dignified voice.

“Yeah, yeah. Thanks,” I said, and stood up to stretch. “Finish these on your own? I gotta pick up Meiko to prep for a work thing.”

“Wait up. This is for you,” Rou said, and stood up to hand over the Yellow Memoka.

“Asuka, huh…” I said, taking it. She had nearly destroyed my ability to become Year. It felt odd to be using her power now.

“The Memoka will transform you into Star. Its specialty is jumping,” Rou said. “So...”

“So what?” I asked.

“In case you have to use it,” Rou said vaguely. “I want you to be safe.” It struck me that he had said he listens to my show. He had to know about my event. I bit my lip. He raised an eyebrow at me, but he didn’t seem like he was going to call me out on it, so I just thanked him and left to get Meiko.

I told her about my new Memoka, and about my conversation with Rou and Aki. She agreed that the situation was complicated, but that we had to do what we could, since no one else could. I felt a little better about it.

When we arrived at Dream City Mall, the radio station crew had already set up a small stage and a tent to hide our new intern. A few other booths were set up around the area, mostly local restaurants selling snacks. Because it was the weekend, the mall bustled with activity. Everyone was out with their families. My heart sank. There was too many people.

Okuda-san advanced on us. “We’re starting in fifteen minutes. Go ahead and talk to Meida… Meiaki, or whatever his name is. He’ll need any advice you can give him.”

“Alright,” I said, distractedly scanning the crowds.

“Meiaki?” Meiko asked, glancing at me. That got my attention.

“Huh. I wonder if they’re related,” I said, already sending a text to Akito to that effect. “His name is Meiaki?” I asked Okuda-san.

“I don't know. Kid’s name might be Meiaki? No… Meian. Meian Nisei. Go make him do his own introductions,” Okuda-san said, dismissing us.

“I'll get set up,” Meiko said, and went to check her equipment. I sighed and headed over to the little tent.

Before I could enter I got a text back from Aki. “How many times have I told you that not everyone in this city named Meiaki are related to me?” There even was a complicated emoji tossing over a table in rage.

“So far you’re 2-0 on that one,” I responded with my own teasing emoji. I pushed open the tent door as I pressed send. “I guess it’s actually Meian though. Just thought I’d mess with you.”

The next text had an emoji giving a rude gesture.

I laughed, but was interrupted by the occupant of the tent. A wiry boy in a very starchy University school uniform was pacing in the little tent. He had a fairly average haircut and surprisingly intense eyes.

“Uh, hi. Are you the new intern?” I asked as I edged into the room. “I’m Meiki… Kimura Mei.”

“Yes! I’m Meian Nisei!” The boy stopped abruptly and bowed sharply. “Nice to meet you, Kimura-san!” I cringed. He sounded like a high school boy asked to do give a speech for a school event. In that he was loud and his diction was very unnatural, but clear. And loud.

“Alright, Nisei-kun, did Okuda-san tell you what you’re going to be doing?” I asked cautiously.

“Wearing a costume! Specifically, the costume of Kamen Rider Year, FM 98.4’s newest mascot!” He did a sharp pose that resembled a dab.

“Year isn’t a mascot!” I said, annoyed.

“Yes! It’s a way of life!” He did another sharp pose. “I’ll bring honor to the suit!”

I resisted the urge to bring my palm up to my face. “Listen, this could be dangerous. ReMares are real and if they mistake you for the real Year, you could end up dead,” I explained.

“Right! I understand!” Nisei said, snapping to attention again.

“Do you?” I asked weakly. He did not inspire confidence in me.

“Yes ma’am! I’ll get changed right now!” he said, and quickly pulled on the spandex jumpsuit over his clothes.

I picked up the helmet and turned it around in my hands. Okuda-san had made improvements over the past week, and it did look more like what it was supposed to. I was not sure whether to be mollified by this, or more worried. “Here,” I said, reluctantly handing it over to the young man, feeling like I was giving a toddler a knife.

“You’re on soon!” Okuda-san said from outside the tent.

“Alright!” I called back, and then lowered my voice to talk to Nisei, “Just remember, Year is the protector of people’s precious memories. Please try to… I guess mention something like that?”

“I understand! I’ve listened to all your broadcasts about Year! You can count on me!” Nisei posed again.

I cringed and headed out to the stage. Meiko was already sitting there, and a crowd had gathered in the audience. We were a popular radio show after all. I sat down next to Meiko. “He’s such a tiny nerd, this is going to be a disaster.” I glanced around the crowd. I could see some of our coworkers. Nawata and Oscar were both there, handing out pens and magnets with the radio station's logo on them. Besides that, it was mostly parents with small kids.

“Don’t worry. If anything goes wrong, we’re here,” she said quietly.

“I thought you were hiding the whole…” I said, making a stamping gesture in front of my waist.

She gave me a look. “Don’t worry.”

“Alright,” I said. Okuda-san gave us a thumbs up for us to start, and Meiko turned on the mics. “Good afternoon, Oara! It’s FM 98.4 Mei Brigade here with a special segment! We’re your hosts, Kimura Mei.”

“And Koda Mei! We’re live at Dream City Mall!” Meiko added cheerfully.

“And we have a special guest today! Year! Come on out!” I called out. I tried to keep my voice professionally cheerful, but it was hard. I felt really reluctant about the whole situation.

The fake Year came out of the tent and jogged up to the stage, waving at the crowd. He stopped in front of the booth, and made a dramatic pose, and then another.

“So, uh, Meiko has met Year in person before,” I reminded the crowd. I was hoping she wouldn’t start with her flirty nonsense again.

“Yes, I have. Year is pretty cool,” Meiko said cheerfully. Year gave her a salute and came over to sit between us in the booth. “Welcome to the show, Year. How are you?”

“I’m fine! I have been fighting monsters every day! Nice to meet you!” The fake Year said, his words formal and again, loud. It made the speakers squeal. Meiko quietly adjusted his volume of his microphone.

I continued as if nothing had happened. “Nice to meet you too, Year. So, the audience has compiled some questions for you. Shall we get started?” I asked, pulling the box of questions closer to me.

“Yes!” he shouted.

I tried to hide a wince. I wanted to figure out which adult had praised him for giving such loud and clear responses and kick them. I pulled out a slip of paper. “Alright, this one doesn’t have a name, but they ask ‘What do you use to get ink out of your cape?’” My voice went up at the end, baffled by the question.

“I… I um…. I use Attack!” Nisei said, apparently as thrown off by the question as I was. The crowd laughed, amused that he had came up with an appropriately named laundry soap.

“Alright, next question from Momiji-kun, ‘What’s your favorite season?’” Meiko asked, unruffled.

“I… I like Fall?” Nisei said, sounding less formal and more confused.

“HA!” A member of the audience shouted, and I looked in their direction. I sighed when I saw who it was. Akito was leaning against one of the snack stands, selling curry bread. Rou was wearing a pink apron over his leather jacket and helping out.

“Anyway, next question,” I said, trying not to sound annoyed. “Who is your cutest sidekick…” I trailed off, and shook my head. I balled the paper in my fist. He wouldn't know how to answer that. I pulled out the next question, “What are you fighting for?”

“Justice!” Nisei said, relieved to have something less odd to answer.

Unfortunately it was wrong. Justice was sort of a complicated thing. It wasn’t like Year really fought against normal crime. “And people’s precious memories,” I added, shooting a glare at the intern. “As you have said before, when calling in to warn the radio of a potential attack.”

“Yes! That too!” Nisei said.

“Alright! That's it for our questions,” Meiko said, taking the box away from me firmly, before I started a fight with him. “Year will sign things here in a few minutes, so we’ll turn to music for our listeners at home!” Meiko said, smoothing things over with some music, which also played over the speakers in the mall.

I jabbed Nisei in the side discretely, “The one thing I told you to remember…”

“I am sorry!” he said, bowing sharply.

“Enough, it’s time to go give autographs,” I said, brought him over to another table, where Okuda-san was lining up the crowd.

Akito was first in line for an autograph, “Aki, what a pleasant surprise,” I said, my voice just sweet enough to drive home the point that I hadn’t appreciated his dumb questions.

“Well, Meiko told us that you were nervous about meeting Year, so we figured we’d show up for moral support,” Akito said, and handed a picture of Year to the fake. “So! I’ve heard a lot about you, kid!”

Nisei stared up at him and didn’t say anything.

“Say hello, Year. These people are here to see you, so please be friendly,” I reminded him, my teeth gritted.

“Hello, nice to meet you!” His voice was very stiff again. He signed the picture in big loopy English letters, and then stared expectantly up at Akito for him to move aside.

“Awkward kid, huh?” Aki said as he passed me to go back to his booth.

“Shh,” I hissed at him.

It seemed he warmed up fairly quickly, because although he remained stiff and formal, he did occasionally pose, to the delight of the smaller fans.

After he seemed to be on a roll, I stepped away to go talk more on the radio with Meiko. At the next radio break, Okuda-san came up to the table.

“I need to clear the stage. We’re doing a fight scene with Year,” Okuda said shortly.

“What?” I asked, surprised.

“Hurry, we're going to start soon. Move everything off the stage,” Okuda-san ordered.

“Alright,” I said. Oscar joined Meiko and me in moving the contents of the table over to the side, off the stage. “Did you hear about this?” I asked. Meiko shook her head no, which I expected. She might quietly invite Akito and Rou to the event since she saw that I was worried about something happening, but she definitely would have told me if Okuda-san had been planning something.

“I heard about it. I thought it was kind of obvious though. Of course a hero is going to fight, correct?” Oscar said, carrying an amp down the stage stairs.

“Of course,” I echoed, peeved that the Mei Brigade wasn't told.

Once the stage was clear, Okuda-san took a mic and stood at one corner of the stage. Year stood at attention at the bottom of the stage. “Good afternoon, everyone!”

The kids shouted it back, and she went on. “Year’s here to protect a super secret light crystal! But- uh oh! Here come the evil Shocker gang!” She cried, and three guys in skeletal wrestling masks and all black clothes stumbled on stage, pretending to look around. “Look out, Year!”

Year looked up and jumped onto stage. He got into a dramatic fight with the Shocker mooks, complete with cheesy sound effects. From the angle that I was watching, it was clear that nobody’s punches even came close to hitting. And it seemed like he posed with every other action. It was silly. I told Meiko that and she raised an eyebrow at me.

“You pose all the time too. Even out of costume. Living in color, remember?” She did my crossed peace sign pose with an incredulous look on her face.

“That’s different!” I objected.

“The kid has that pretty spot on,” Oscar said.

““His helmet is the wrong color!” I said, annoyed. It was just the eyes, really. Instead of silvery with a hint of shimmering rainbow, they were completely black.

“Just enjoy the show,” Meiko said, putting her hand on my shoulder and squeezing it.

Another actor crashed through the tent. They wore a black rubber suit, which had shiny patches of indigo and silver on it, and large fuzzy black wings. It looked like a moth. “And what’s that supposed to be? Dark Year?” I asked, still annoyed.

“It is I! Mothren! I have heard of your Light Crystal and am here to take it!” the suit actor said, hands on his hips. “Hand it over, girl!” he demanded, grabbing Okuda-san by the collar.

“Ah! Help me! He,” she shouted, but faltered, and shot a look over at the fake Year.

“I’ll save you!” Nisei drew a green plastic light saber and brandished it at Mothren.

Mothren dropped Okuda-san and turned to face Nisei. “And who is this?”

“I am Year! And I’m here to defeat you!” He slashed the plastic sword in front of him.

“Ha! What a puny hero!” Mothren laughed, and knocked the sword away.

“Do your best, Year!” the children shouted together.

Okuda-san had climbed off the stage and came over to us.

“Alright, this is pretty impressive,” I admitted. “You know some pretty good suit actors, don’t you?”

She shook her head and pointed at the battle.

“And the kid too. I’m sorry I doubted you,” I said.

Mothren grabbed the fake Year and shook him. “Now what do you have to say to that?”

Year was silent.

“I thought so! Fools!”

“Meiki, I think that’s a real one,” Meiko said, looking up at me with wide eyes.

“Shit,” I said, standing up and getting out my Memoka. “I knew this would happen!”

“Wait, wait! I have an idea,” Aki had come up behind us. He told us, and then ran off. I followed him, and Meiko went to where Okuda-san had dropped her microphone.

“Boys and Girls, this monster is super strong. Let’s call for Year’s friends! Come on! Come on!” Meiko said in a voice that was somehow even cuter than her regular radio voice.

No, now wasn’t a good time to get distracted. Akito and I transformed behind the tent. Fall rushed onto the stage, while I held back.

“Another foolish hero? I’ll silence you too!” Mothren said, and snatched at Fall.

Fall dodged adeptly, and summoned his glaives, “I don’t think so, punk!” He traded blows with the moth, pushing him back. After a final push, Fall swooped down to pick up Year, and carried him into the tent.

“Year is hurt! Let’s build up Year’s power! Everyone, let’s yell “Do your Best!” okay?” Meiko encouraged the crowd of children.

They called out to me with all their little hearts. If it had been me injured, I really did think it would have given me the power to continue. They were so into it, and they didn’t even realize it wasn’t supposed to be a real fight.

With that as my cue, I stumbled out from behind the tent, acting like I was getting stronger with their applause.

“Back already, Year? I’ll take more than your words next, fool!” Mothren gloated.

I didn’t answer. I’d have a different voice from Nisei, and it was better for him to think that he could still steal my memories. I was a better target than the kids or my other coworkers. I gestured with one hand for him to come at me.

He did. He flew up high and dived at me, feet first. It turned out his wings were not just a cool cape, like my armor’s. That was hardly fair. I tried to dodge out of the way, but he caught my shoulder and I went flying back. I stood up, staggering. It hurt.

“Do your best!” Meiko called again, her heart into it as much as the kids had been, and the kids echoed her. I shook off the pain. I could keep going. I punched the moth ReMare in the face, and he grabbed my arm. I struggled to pull it away, and then kicked him in the gut. Mothren stumbled back, and saw Meiko. Before I could move, he was flying again, towards her. She was still focused on keeping the crowd calm.

“Meiko!” I shouted, but Mothren grabbed her. It was a mistake, for Mothren, anyway. She took Mothren’s grip and his flying momentum, and threw him. Mothren crashed into our press area, and the audience started getting rattled. Someone screamed. I ran for Meiko. Mothren quickly got up, and started flying again, this time towards the crowd.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, that’s a real ReMare! Please come this way! Don’t push!” Rou shouted, guiding the crowd to evacuate. Some of the kids started crying as their parents ushered them towards the door. A couple braver kids kept yelling encouragement to Year. Fall came out of the tent and threw a glaive at Mothren. It hit the ReMare in the leg and it dipped down. Fall ran to drag him down farther, hanging on the glaive, despite Mothren’s kicking him in the head. I wanted to go help him, but I had to make sure Meiko wasn’t hurt.

“Are you okay?” I asked, helping Meiko up.

She frowned, and then nodded.

“Can’t talk?” I asked, pointing at my mouth.

“Non… Je ne peux pas parler japonais,” She explained.

“… It took your memory of Japanese?” I asked.

She frowned as she tried to puzzle out my words, and finally gave up. She shrugged and shook her head no. Which I took for a yes.

“Alright. Stay here. I’ll go help Fall,” I said, standing up.

She grabbed my cape, her Winter Driver in hand. She stared up at me.

I wanted to say no. But that would make her angry, and she'd probably be safer in armor anyway. “If you can,” I said, nodding.

“Transformer!” she shouted, and brought it down to her waist. As she stepped through her sigil of light and transformed, Fall crashed into a table.

I ran after Mothren, the Prism Blade chiming that it was ready. I pulled it out, ready to attack.

“Fais attention!” Winter called, not far behind me.

I didn't know what she said, so I kept going. Suddenly, something crashed into my head, and I fell to the ground. I looked up, and ton of blots had appeared. Winter was overwhelmed, with a ring of Blots pressing up around her. Fall was struggling to stand up.

No time to be out with a head injury. I kicked the blot that had gotten a sneak attack on me and jumped up. Mothren was getting away, but Winter was also in trouble. I glanced between them, and chose to slice up some blots to get Winter free. Fall was up now, and after Mothren again. I trusted him to take care of it.

She rattled off some annoyed sounding French at me.

“Use your sword!” I said, holding up the Prism Blade.

She said something else and then kicked a blot square in the face.

A loud primal scream made everyone, including Mothren and the blots, stop what they were doing and look up at the second floor balcony of the mall. Another rider stood on top of the glass barrier, hands clenched into fists. He was mostly pale blue, but he had searing bright yellow and orange details. A gauzy yellow scarf was tied around his throat. His bug like eyes were bright orange, and the details on his mask made him look like he was yelling.

With a vicious diving kick, he slammed into Mothren. He used Mothren as a springboard and jumped down to the first floor, landing near Fall. Mothren crashed into a support beam and sunk to the ground. The blots babbled excitedly and ran towards him, absorbing into his body.

“Thanks! Is that you, Jiro?” Fall asked, raising a hand for a high five with the new rider. “Finally got to fight, huh?”

The rider stared at him, and then punched his outstretched hand, and brought is knee up into Fall’s chest.

Fall stumbled back, “Ugh! Hey, now. That's rude.”

The new rider screamed and launched himself at Fall again. I rushed to his side and aimed a kick to his shoulder. The rider stumbled aside, and screamed again.

“At least Sharky used her words,” I grumbled to myself. “Listen,” I added to the new rider, “Don’t go punching my comrades.” I pointed at the strange rider. He snarled and tried to punch me. I blocked. He was strong. And I knew Fall and Winter were strong too, but when I fought them to train, they were a bit more… restrained.

I heard Winter shouting about something and glanced back at her. I couldn’t tell what she was talking about again. The new rider took a swing at me while I was distracted, and Fall stepped in and knocked his hand aside with his glaive.

“Ah-ah-ah. None of that now,” Fall said. “Go see what she needs. I’ll take care of Shouty here.”

“Right,” I said, and ran back to her, crashing through the Blot that she was trading blows with.

She shouted something in French again, and pointed up at Mothren. He had flown up to the second floor and was bashing against the glass ceiling.

“Damn,” I muttered. I was pretty sure that by the time I got up there, I’d be out of luck.

Winter said something again, gesturing at my Memokas and miming transforming.

“A different one?” I asked, “That might work.” I picked the pink Memoka off the belt, and swiped it across my Driver.

Koto music played, and the belt announced, “Sakura in full bloom, come and see!” Pink petals of light floated around me, and I dashed up the stairs. I jumped up on the barrier and threw a spray of pink Prism Sakura at Mothren. He blew them back with his wings, and I raised my arms to block them. Once it was clear, I jumped up at Mothren, in an attempt to tackle him down. I couldn't reach him. He smashed into the window one last time. Instead of shattering into a million pieces, it spider webbed but held together. That was apparently enough for the ReMare. Mothren oozed through the cracks. I landed on one knee, and he made a face at me before flying off.

Back on the first floor, Winter had dispatched the rest of the blots and had joined Fall in defending against the strange rider, who had picked up a chair and was wildly swinging it. I jumped down from the second floor, landing behind him. “Put the chair down,” I said, hands out like I was trying to calm an angry animal. He chucked the chair at me. I knocked it aside.

“Summer?!” Rou shouted from the entrance of the mall, where he had lead our audience.

The angry rider looked sharply over at Rou, and then at each of us, as if just realizing that he was outnumbered. He made a noise that started as a strangled hiss and became an angry roar before running off wildly.

“Falling down, bye bye!” My belt chimed, and my transformation disappeared on its own.

The others swiped their Driver clear, and both chimed their detransformation phrase. Meiko walked up to me, muttering something in French, before tugging at my vest.

“Hey!” I said, surprised. It wasn’t like her to be that forward in public. She pulled out the yellow Memoka and tapped it against my forehead. “Ow.” I took it from her and realized what she meant. “Oh right. This one is good at jumping…” I said. “I’m sorry, I was worried about you and just sort of forgot.” I rubbed the back of my head, feeling guilty.

She punched me in the arm, but nodded. It seemed like although she didn’t understand my words, she understood the sentiment and was forgiving me.

Rou came over to us, “This is a problem.”

“I dunno, Meiko can’t sass me. Seems like its fine,” Akito said, blowing a kiss at Meiko. She didn’t understand his words, but she punched him in the arm anyway, considerably harder than she had punched me. “Owwww! I’m kidding! Of course it’s a problem!”

“It’s more than just that,” Rou sighed.

“You knew that Rider, didn’t you?” I asked.

“I know the transformation. I made the belt,” Rou said, running a hand through his pink hair. “But I have no clue who is using it. It was stolen from me.”

“You have the worst luck with that,” I said, and he sighed heavily.

“I know,” he said, “I thought it was destroyed.”

“Whoever they are, I don’t think they’re an ally,” Akito said, frowning.

Meiko watched all of us, frowning. I could tell she was trying hard to follow the conversation.

“He did kick Mothren in the face, though.”

“Enemy of our Enemy isn’t necessarily our friend. It seemed like Mothren was just in the way,” Akito said.

“Oscar?” Meiko asked.

“Oscar? What about him?” I asked, annoyed.

“Isn’t that the French guy?” Akito asked.

“Oh! He could translate!” I said, relieved that he wasn’t making things complicated again. “Where did he go?”

“I sent everyone outside. He seemed like he was the closest thing to being in charge that can still speak Japanese, so I have him looking after your boss and that kid,” Rou explained. “I don’t know if either of them have a second language, so they might be very confused…”

“ _Do you speak English_?” Akito asked Meiko, using stilted high school English. “I don’t remember much more than that, though.”

“ _A little_?” Meiko said, struggling with it. She had learned it in high school and junior high too, but she had not taken it as seriously as she had taken French in University.

“Oh! I might be able to explain then,” I said. English had been one of my better subjects. Mostly because at the time I had been particularly obsessed with American actors and bands, so I had studied hard so I could understand their songs and movies, and read more articles about them.

That exact reason was also why I had become a radio host.

“ _That man was Summer. He stole his Driver._ _He is not a friend. Rou doesn’t know who he is_ ,” I explained, trying to go slowly so that she would understand.

“ _Ok, ok_ ,” Meiko said, nodding, although she frowned and looked puzzled. I didn't think she understood completely.

“Let’s clean up here and decide what to do back at my lab,” Rou said, picking up a broken table. “I think I’ve got to tell you a few things…”

“We should get Oscar,” I said, giving up. I wasn't sure how much I could trust him with Year stuff, but it was better than Meiko being out of the loop.

There was a distant scream, and Akito and I glanced at each other. “Sounds like Mothren didn’t go far. Let’s go!”

 


	12. Thief

We ran out to the parking lot, where our coworkers and the audience had gathered. Mothren swooped down into the crowd. People screamed and tried to scatter. Mothren snatched up a couple of children. They cried wordlessly, trying to reach back for their parents. “Meiko! _Tell Oscar! They need to go!”_ I pointed wildly towards the panicked crowd. I half expected her to argue and join in the fight, but she nodded and ran to Oscar. I could hear her addressing him in French.

I took the yellow marker out from its slot on the belt and uncapped it. I swiped it across the Time Driver.

It played a beautiful tinkling sound, like bells or a harp. It was hard to tell which. The driver said “CROSS THE STARS! THIS IS YOUR CHANCE! STAR!” Glittering yellow light sparked and spun around me like a galaxy. New armor appeared over me. This set was bright yellow with shades of buttery light yellow as accents. The cape had a galaxy of stars across it.

Mothren landed on the massive sign that said Dream City Mall, depositing the children on the M. They tried to crowd away from the drop.

“I’m living in color!” I shouted, doing my crossed victory signs pose and then launching myself at Mothren. It was time to see what Star could do. I jumped up. And it was quite a jump! I actually overshot myself. I flailed briefly, and managed to land on the roof. I adjusted my jump to hop down to the sign. As soon as I got my balance, I spin kicked Mothren off the ledge. He went flying back, but caught himself midair. “Hey kids, don’t worry. I’m here to help,” I said to the crying kids. They looked at me in confusion and fear.

Right. They didn’t have Japanese. I pointed down towards the retreating crowd. A few parents were struggling to stay nearby and were calling the children’s names. They seemed to understand, and calmed down a little.

I grabbed one child who couldn’t be much more than seven, and a child a little older than that clung to my side. I jumped down carefully. Akito had transformed, and was fighting Blots that the ReMare had summoned. He cleared a circle around him. I passed the children off to him. “Keep them safe. I’m going after that damn bug,” I said, shifting my stance to fight.

“Got it!” he said, saluting me.

I took over with the blots. I punched one in the face and it squelched. I kicked another one, and it still felt gross, but it distracted the inky monsters long enough where Fall could get the children to their parents and turn to guard their retreat.

Mothren was flapping his way towards the crowd. “No you don’t!” I said, and jumped up to grab him. This time it was just right. I crashed into him. In a tangled mess of wings and limbs, we fell to the ground. Mothren took the brunt of the fall, splattering onto the ground. I got up.

He started to ooze back his normal form, and jump back into the air, but the fall had damaged his wings. “Noooo! You clipped my wings!” he complained, fluttering them uselessly.

“I sure did. Now. You’ve got something that doesn’t belong to you,” I said.

“How are you… I stole your words!” Mothren objected.

“Hmph!” I smirked under my mask and swiped a thumb across the bottom of my mask and gave him a thumbs down, “You didn’t even notice, huh? Should I be offended, or are you just that stupid?”

“Doesn’t matter! I’ll just steal them again!” Mothren shouted and ran at me.

“PRISM CHARGE COMPLETE!” the Driver announced.

“Just in time!” I grinned under my mask, and drew the yellow Memoka.

Light shot out of both ends of it, like a long staff. “PRISM STAFF! GO! GO! GO!” it announced. I gave it an experimental spin.

“Excellent,” I said, and ran at Mothren.

Mothren slowed to a halt, knowing better to get into the range of the Prism Staff. It was too late. I spun the staff, and thrust it into the moth ReMare’s chest. He clawed at the wound, and then started to melt into the ground. The ink hadn’t lost its color, so he wasn’t really down yet. I jabbed down with the staff into the gooey ink, and flung it up into the air. He solidified in midair, and skidded back on his feet.

I retracted the Prism staff and put the Memoka back into the Time Driver and shouted “Vanishing point!” I leaped up and kicked Mothren squarely in the face. He dissolved into an inky puddle, and an indigo orb hovered above it. I stood up and waved over at the crowd.

I heard a metallic crunching sound, and turned around.

Summer had landed on a car, denting it. He jumped off it and snatched the indigo orb.

“Hey! Give that back!” I shouted, and shifted to a fighting stance.

His multifaceted eyes were locked on mine, and he pressed the indigo orb against his belt. It disappeared and indigo streaks appeared on his armor. He held his arms out as if inviting me to hit him.

Well, I had to oblige. I rushed at him, drawing the Prism Staff again. I went to strike him and he summoned two sets of nunchaku, spinning them to knock the staff aside. Each set looked like it was made of a heavy yellow metal, connected by crackling blue light.

He spun it again, cracking it against my shoulder. I shifted the staff around to smack him in the stomach, and he took a few steps back, circling me to get a better vantage point.

“Why are you doing this?” I demanded.

He answered with a battle cry and charged at me. I slapped aside his nunchaku, and spun away. He continued pressing me, and we traded blows. I had to give ground to him. Whatever he had done with the indigo globe, it had made him stronger.

He hit my hand with one of the nunchaku and my fingers went numb. I dropped the staff, and he punched me in the face. I staggered back, and fell to one knee.

Summer flipped his nunchaku, ready to strike again. Suddenly, Fall was there, glaives fused together in a more dangerous staff. He blocked the attack and spun the glaive, driving Summer back.

I got back up, grabbing my own staff and shifted into a fighting pose.

Summer seemed to think better of fighting both of us, and made a disgusted noise before dashing off again.

“Should we chase him?” I asked, stepping forward to stand next to Fall. I hadn’t realized it before, but I was breathing hard.

“No. We need to regroup. Something tells me he’ll be back anyway,” Fall said. “I got our audience to go home. Your crew is still with Meiko though. Or at least, the French guy and your boss are. The kid got scared and ran off.”

“Are they alright?” I asked.

“Yeah. Meiko may have threatened to shave my head if I didn’t go help you,” Fall said shrugging exaggeratedly. “Who’s to argue with a lady?”

“She did not,” I said. I sunk to my knees. Fall seemed to have a habit of pretending Meiko was much scarier than she really was. She seemed content to not disabuse him of the notion so I usually let it be.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Fall said. “You okay?”

“That guy is pretty strong,” I complained, and erased my Time Driver.

“Erase, Bye Bye!” It chimed, and my armor disappeared. Akito’s driver echoed mine with his own sign off phrase.

“Come on. Let’s go show the others you’re still alive,” Akito said, helping me up. I slung my arm over his shoulders. He was a little short to help, but I appreciated it anyway. We hobbled over to the others.

As soon as Meiko saw me she ran to me and tackle hugged me out of Akito’s embrace. I staggered back, but she managed to keep us both standing. “I’m alright, Meiko,” I said amused.

“I didn’t like it when you didn’t understand me,” she said quietly.

“I know. I’m a dunderhead enough in Japanese, let alone in another language,” I said, trying to lighten her mood.

“At least then we can talk about misunderstandings,” Meiko said.

“Yeah,” I agreed, squeezing her tight.

“Um, ladies?” Oscar cleared his throat. Meiko squeezed me back before letting me go.

“Hm?” She raised an eyebrow at him daring him to say anything. He went silent.

“I’d like to have a word with you, over here.” Okuda-san said, gesturing away from the group.

“Alright,” I said, glancing at my friends before following her. Once we were out of direct conversational range of the others, Okuda-san stopped. “I wanted to say I’m sorry.”

“Why?” I asked, feeling tired and confused. She didn't apologize often.

She blinked at me, and took a deep breath. “I went ahead with the event, despite your recommendations that it was dangerous. You know the situation better than I do.”

“Oh. Right. Well, I forgive you. Is Nisei alright?” I asked.

“Nisei?” She frowned.

“The intern?” I reminded her.

“The intern! Right. It’s been a crazy day,” Okuda-san said by way of excusing herself from responsibility. “He should be fine now, right? Everyone got their memories back, right?”

“Well, yeah, but it’s gotta be kinda hard to be expecting to fight suit actors and then the real deal shows up. Plus the ReMare was kind of rough with him,” I said.

“I suppose so. Well, he’ll be at work tomorrow so you can check on him then,” Okuda-san said.

“Wait, he’s sticking around? I thought you realized the whole fake Year thing was a bad idea?” I asked.

“No sense wasting a perfectly good intern. Honestly, he was more interested in working in the station anyway,” Okuda-san shrugged, like she thought it was odd someone would want to do the work they were actually hired for over playing dress up and fighting.

“Right. I’ve got to discuss some things with my allies, so if you don’t need anything more from me, we’ll be leaving,” I said. She nodded and dismissed me, and I went back to the others. “Rou?” I asked. I needed to know more about how the Summer Driver had gotten out of his hands. “You said we needed to talk.”

He met my eyes, and there was worry there. It made me nervous. “Right. Let’s go.”

Back at the lab, Akito patched up our wounds. There were no serious injuries this time, but I had a few bruises and scrapes that were soothed by cooling gel compresses. Meiko took over Rou’s small kitchen, to make hot tea for all of us. Sharky spiraled around me, greeting me happily.

“Hi there, Sharky. Did you miss us?” I asked. Sharky answered by chomping one of my fingers and then racing off. “Ow! That hurt,” I complained, shaking the pain away. Rou sat down on the floor. “What are you doing?” I asked, although I sat down across from him when he gestured to the spot.

“I’m going to have you go into my memories. It’ll make it a little easier to explain,” Rou said, getting comfortable.

“Like before? When you showed me how I became Year?” I asked, suddenly feeling nervous. I had slipped into memories a few times before, but it had never been intentional on my part.

“Yes. And I’d like the two of you to see if you can tag along,” Rou said.

Meiko handed us each a mug of hot green tea. “What should I do?” Meiko asked.

“Just put a hand on Meiki’s shoulder or something. I don’t know if it will work, but it shouldn’t hurt to try,” Rou said.

Meiko sat down next to me and obliged. Akito joined us and put his hand on my shoulder too.

Rou nodded and closed his eyes, as if meditating. After a second, his glowing pink fox ears and tail appeared. He opened his eyes. “Alright. I’m ready.”

“Ey, foxy!” Akito said with a mischievous grin.

Rou gave him an amused smile, and held out his hands to me. “Take my hands,” Rou said.

I did what he said. The scene shifted.

I didn’t recognize the location. Fox-Rou was there. Two faint glowing ghostly shapes, one bronze and the other mint green floated behind me. “Aki? Meiko?”

Rou reached up and touched the bronze one. It flared brighter, and Rou took his hand away. “They’re not totally here.” Rou explained, “I thought that might be the case. They are favored by the Bright Lady but they aren’t her chosen. They should be able to hear and see what happens here though.”

I nodded. For better or worse, it seemed like this memory viewing was my weird talent alone. “What are you trying to show me?” I asked.

“After high school, Meiko, Akito, and you went to university here.”

“I remember that,” I said. “Except for Akito.”

“Right. I'm just setting the stage. We fought with a lot of monsters, but we didn’t know what to do with the orbs after you defeated a ReMare,” Rou explained. The scene changed, and images of me fighting different ReMares briefly appeared. The orbs were left behind, and then blots or other ReMares came to restore them.

“They kept coming back,” I said.

Rou nodded, “I tried to ask the Bright Lady what we should do. I couldn’t get her attention. I haven't been able to since you became her champion. So I did something… dangerous.”

The scene shifted again to a dark place. Everything had the faint sheen of ink. A younger Rou, with ears and tail out, took a deep breath, and then strolled confidently through the hall. He found an area where several ReMares were talking and sat and listened.

“Just put him back in a blot already and get it over with,” a green striped frog grumbled.

“Why though? Everyone thinks he’s annoying. Honestly, I think Tigra is thrilled that she doesn’t have to deal with him anymore,” A cat ReMare with rich blue light dappling her inky black form said.

“No, no. Minotaur wants him back,” the frog said.

“Whatever. I don’t want to bother with High ReMare politicking,” The cat said, shrugging her shoulders. “They’ll do whatever they want anyway.”

“Shh,” the frog said, and glanced over at Rou.

Rou startled. “Me? Oh, don’t worry, I don’t understand their politics either,” Rou said, laughing it off.

“You look like one of them, with their fancy human forms…” The cat purred, eyeing him with interest.

“It was a gift. I don’t know for what though. I’m actually worried they’ll use it as an excuse to blame something on me,” Rou said, talking fast as he scrambled for a cover story.

The two ReMares thought about it and shrugged. “Sounds about right to me,” The frog complained.

“So, why does he even have to go back into a blot?” Rou asked, inviting them to continue their former conversation.

“Right?” The cat said, glad someone was agreeing with her.

“It's possible that a Spirit could recover enough to reform into their original form, but the way things are, they're just going to get sick and die before they're strong enough. It's safer to be a ReMare. And it’s dangerous not to have a body. We're out a comrade,” the frog said, annoyed.

“Who wants a shit comrade anyway?” The cat stretched and stalked off.

“So you were a spy?” I asked the current Rou.

He nodded. “I had to figure out if there was some way to thin the ranks a little. I had been hoping for a way to kill them, but they handed me a better way, by letting me know it was possible for a ReMare to become a spirit again.”

The scene shifted again. This time it was just the cat and Rou.

“Maneki, what are you showing me?” Rou asked, sneaking after her.

“Shh. You know how that dunderhead got his butt kicked by Year a few weeks ago?” the cat asked.

“Yeah?” Rou said.

She pushed open a door and pulled him in. “Here. Tigra stole him from Minotaur,” She grinned and held up a complicated sigil drawn onto a scrap of paper. The lines glowed faintly.

“Wait… He’s in this?” Rou asked, dubious.

“Mmhm. This was just enough to trap him for a while and keep him safe. But Tigra has some big plans,” Maneki said.

“Like what?” Rou asked, examining the paper. There was an intense gleam in his eye, like she had just handed him the keys to unlimited treasure.

“Now, that would be telling!” Maneki trilled, grinning smugly. “She only trusts me, you know.”

“Did you know what she was making?” I asked. “Is this where you got the idea for the origami?”

“A weapon or something, I’m guessing.” He shook his head, “And it was. Spirits are attracted to patterns and lines, especially in such a weakened state.”

“Why?” I asked.

Rou looked thoughtful for a moment. “It's hard to say, but it kind of feels like a memory.”

“So what does this have to do with Summer?” I asked.

“Hold on, I’ll get to it. If I don't explain this, it won't make sense,” Rou said, and continued, “I brought this information back and so… The next couple of fights…”

The scene shifted. Year was doing a Vanishing Point, crashing foot first into a pink rabbit ReMare. It collapsed into sludge and the pink globe floated up. Rou took it. The scene shifted and Rou was working in a different lab. There was a marker in the center of a set of magic circles. The lights flared and the marker became a pink Memoka.

“That’s Sakura!” I said, surprised. “Is that how you make Memokas?”

“Not anymore. I’ve got computer programs that make it easier. Safer for the spirit too.” Rou explained. “I think that way only worked because she's the same color spirit as Ki.”

There were a few flickers of other battles, and images of Rou working on something much more complicated.

“What’s that?” I asked.

“Summer. I was hoping to be able to join you in your fight.” Rou smiled wryly.

“You made Summer first?” I asked. “Not Fall?”

“It happened to be the energy I could collect the most of at the time,” Rou explained. “Anyway, when ReMares started disappearing for good from the Under, the High ReMares got angry. Especially Shika and Tigra. The rabbit, Moon was her name, was something of a favorite of Shika’s.”

The scene shifted. Year was kneeling in the grass. The armor was scuffed and the multifaceted left eye was cracked. An incredibly tall technicolor ReMare, with a rack of antlers loomed over her prone form. Her limbs were long and slender, and her shoulders oddly wide. Fear washed over me. I couldn't remember her, but I reached out with a trembling hand to grab Rou's.

He squeezed my hand. “Shika,” Rou said in a low voice.

The massive deer ReMare bent down. The way she moved her joints made her seem both fragile and odd. By the beating Year had taken, I sincerely doubted the first was true.

Year struggled to a standing position, and lashed out wildly with the Prism Blade. Shika ignored the feeble attack, batting it away like a fly. She grabbed the Time Driver and yanked. There was a blast of white light, and Shika edged back, guarding her eyes. It disappeared quickly, and Year’s armor crumbled. With it, so did my past self. I fell to the ground, unconscious and battered.

“No!” Past Meiko shrieked, echoed by Akito. They rushed in, both with makeshift weapons. They were quickly thrown aside.

“Akkun!” Another person yelled. It was a younger boy with spiked black hair, and a fierce scowl. He picked up a metal pole and thrust it into Shika's back.

It seemed it annoyed her more than it hurt. Shika turned and grabbed him, bringing him close to her face. “Little fool, you would have done better to run.” She discarded the boy, and looked at the past Rou. And at this point, Rou did run.

I glanced at him, not sure what to make of it.

“I’m sorry,” Rou said quietly. “I know it looks bad. I wanted to fight… But I hadn't finished Summer yet. Year was the only one who could do anything…and even you were beaten badly. The only way to help you was to run. I came back as soon as it was safe to get you guys to the hospital.”

“It wouldn’t have made sense to throw away your memories too,” I said, slowly.

“Shika took your memories of being Year, and of Akito and me. And similar memories from Meiko and Akito. And poor Togo… Shika took everything,” Rou explained.

“That was Togo?” I asked. “That’s terrible…”

Rou nodded solemnly. “So… After that… You were kind of a mess for a while…”

“I remember being in the hospital. I thought it was a car wreck,” I said.

“Yeah. But then Shika started targeting everyone we knew, and took their memories of us being friends and you being Year. And because I had put Moon in a Memoka, she went after all of the memories of me. I... became a nobody.” He took a deep breath, shoving aside that difficult memory. “I had to get your Driver back,” Rou said, “before she took my memories too. I took the Summer Driver with me. I didn’t know if it would work, but it was the only possible defense I had.”

The scene shifted, and Rou was back in the Under, sneaking into a room. Over the inky black walls there were wide swaths of twelve different colors. There were five large thrones placed in an arch on the opposite side. One was draped with yellow, another with brown, a third with blue, a fourth with purple, and the one in the center just had a messy pile of fabric trashed around the feet of the throne. Rou looked around surreptitiously, and hurried to a side door.

It was a relatively small room, but at one end, there was a pedestal with the Time Driver on it.

“That looks like a trap,” I said.

Rou nodded as he watched himself move closer to the driver. The younger Rou reached out, his hands shaking, and took it. He quickly slipped it into his pocket. He turned and hurried away. He pushed through the door and was immediately clotheslined by Anubis. Pink light flickered between them, and Anubis glowed brighter. Rou staggered to the floor.

“That’s where I lost who created the Time Driver, you, and Meiko,” Rou whispered. “Since I remembered that I made the Summer Driver, I thought the Time one was the same.”

“Well, well, well. What do we have here, Fox?” Anubis asked, grabbing him by the lapel.

“Oh, put him down, dear,” Maneki said. “Before he loses all the sense in his silly little head.”

Anubis dropped Rou again, and Rou scrambled to his feet, stepping away from his reach.

“So, Foxy, what are you doing in that room?” Maneki asked, leaning forward. Her tone was playful and friendly.

Rou drew himself up, “You mean Tigra didn’t tell you? I’m surprised. I thought she trusted you.” Rou said, sounding surprised. A slow grin spread across Maneki’s face. Rou’s hands trembled, but he put on a smooth charming smile that seemed odd to me. It wasn't an expression that I had ever saw cross his face before. I did find him charming in his own rough way, but he wasn't usually deliberately sly.

“What did she say?” the cat asked.

“It’s not for me to tell you if she didn’t,” Rou shrugged, “I’d like to tell you. You’re my friend.”

“Don’t let this fox sweet talk you!” Anubis growled.

“Oh, quit your barking,” Maneki said dismissively. “I want to see where this goes.”

“But-“ Anubis started again.

“Shush,” Maneki said, not taking her eyes off of Rou. “You took the Time Driver, didn’t you?”

Rou winked, “I can’t say.” Rou stretched and put his hands behind his head, lazily strolling away, “It sure will be nice, with her in charge.” He held up one hand to wave at them without looking back.

“Wait just a second there!” Maneki said, appearing in front of Rou. “What are you going to do? Tell me! I told you about trapping that idiot! You gotta! You owe me!”

Rou smirked, “I guess. But…” He flicked his glance towards Anubis, “I have to be discrete.”

She glanced at the dog ReMare, and smirked too. “I see.” She tilted her head towards the main door. “Puppy…” She said with a wheedling tone.

“Don’t call me that, Maneki.” Anubis rolled his eyes.

“Anubis, baby, darling, why don’t you just go and see for yourself?” Maneki gestured towards the side room where the Time Driver had been. Anubis grumbled and stomped off to the other room. I could see the younger Rou's eyes darting. As soon as she looked back at him, he was back to his smirk. “So?”

“The Time Driver won’t work for ReMares. It’s a human thing. Tigra wants me to make a new one for her.” Rou shrugged, looking at his fingernails as if he was unconcerned and arrogant about it. “In fact, I already started making one.” Rou brought out the Summer Driver and waved it casually, before slipping it back into his pocket.

“Is that so?” She grinned. “Oh, Foxy, you are so clever!”

“Of course I am,” Rou said, sounding impatient at the praise.

“Do you think I could help?” She batted her eyelashes and bobbed to the side in a cute way.

“It’s pretty dangerous to mess with something the Bright Lady has made,” Rou cautioned.

“That fluorescent bitch? Her champion is in traction. I’m not afraid of her,” Maneki said, waving her hand in dismissal.

“Of course not. But it’d be like her to put some kind of trap on it,” Rou said, his voice speeding up as he tried to smooth things over. “The Bright Lady is clever enough to-“

“You know, I’ve never heard another ReMare refer to her as the Bright Lady. How interesting,” Maneki mused, and Rou’s eyes widened.

He recovered quickly, “It’s a superstition of mine, that’s all. I’m certainly not strong enough to risk insulting her. I’ll leave that to people more powerful than me,” Rou laughed and threw up his hands as if giving up on that dream.

“Ah yes. Superstition. Is that also why you stay in your fancy human form instead of your true one? It must be tough to maintain, for one so weak,” Maneki said, sounding sympathetic.

“It was a gift. It would be rude not to,” Rou said, starting to sound like his usual surly self.

“See, I’ve asked around. As far as I can tell, none of the four gave it to you. And his highness only gives out more blots,” Maneki said, tapping her chin and strolling towards the main door as if thinking. Rou watched her warily. Anubis appeared from the side room and nodded at Maneki. “Starting to think you’re not really a ReMare at all.” Maneki said.

“Don’t be stupid. Only ReMares can get down here,” Rou swished his glowing pink tail as if to prove his point.

“Oh, I’m not denying you’re a spirit. It’s just interesting how you’ve managed to get down here without merging with a Blot.” Maneki watched Rou greedily. “I bet that’s a real human body, isn’t it?”

“No,” Rou said sharply, “It’s not.” He started to back away.

“It is. You gave the binding technology to Year,” Maneki purred, and suddenly pounced at Rou.

Rou leaped back, landing on all fours like an animal. He stood up slowly, watching the two ReMares. He pulled out the Summer Driver and placed it against his waist. He stamped it and growled “Henshin.”

The Summer Driver played rolling drums with something that sounded like cicadas in the background. “Summer. Engage.” The belt announced. Summer’s sigil appeared in front of Rou and splashed over him, sparkling as his armor appeared. Rou snapped his fingers and posed to fight.

Anubis looked alarmed, but Maneki grinned wildly, baring her glowing fangs. “Anubis, go.”

Anubis splashed into the ground and disappeared. Rou ran in an attempt to catch him. Maneki intercepted him. “No, no. It’s just you and me. For now.”

Maneki and Summer fought like animals. They circled each other, lashing out occasionally to test the other. Summer grabbed her in a headlock and she struggled. She managed to kick at his foot, and he lost his grip and stumbled back. Two dozen blots appeared, each with some small patch of glowing light.

It was like watching wolves go after a deer. They all just latched on to Summer. He knocked some aside, but there was always more. I watched in horror as they beat him to the ground. Anubis appeared and they dispersed. Summer stood up shakily. His armor was cracked in places, but he still put his fists up to fight. He lunged at Maneki, but Anubis caught him underneath the arms and held him firmly. Summer struggled, but he was too weakened to pull away. He slumped to his knees.

Maneki strolled in front of Rou, “Well, well, well. Are you ready to talk now, foxy?” She tilted his helmet up with a gentle hand.

Summer pulled his head away roughly, but he couldn’t really move much. “Year will be reborn! You can’t stop the Bright Lady’s champion!” he snarled, and struggled against Anubis’s grasp.

Maneki laughed and punched him in the gut. Summer grunted in pain and coughed violently. “We can play more, Foxy. Or should I call you Mousy?” She held up a hand and flared her fingers out, claws appearing at the tips. “I have enjoyed toying with you, after all.”

Summer breathed hard. At length he said, “We are Rou and Ki. And we will never allow you to destroy the spirits and humans of this world!” He flung his head back and smashed his helmet into Anubis’s face. The dog ReMare yelped and let go, holding onto his snout. Summer laughed weakly, and lunged at Maneki. She countered his attack, sending him flying. Summer smashed into the wall, and the Summer Driver snapped in half. His transformation fell apart, and Rou sunk to the ground.

“You’re going to die here. Both of you. You are forgotten. Nothing you’ve done will have mattered, and no one will even care,” Maneki purred, and I could see the sheer look of terror on Rou’s face as he stared at her, blood dripping from his mouth. His eye was starting to turn purple and swell up. Maneki moved closer, her tail twitching happily.

Rou suddenly brought out the Time Driver, placed it against his waist, and swiped the pink Memoka across it. “Henshin!” he shouted.

Nothing happened.

Maneki laughed.

And then pink light exploded out of the driver, throwing Maneki and Anubis back, and disintegrating the Blots. The energy recoiled to Rou, and Rou screamed in pain. He blacked out.

And the memory ended. Rou and I sat across from each other, and Meiko and Akito each had a hand on my shoulder. We were silent for a moment as we processed what we had seen.

“What happened after that?” I asked.

“I woke up in the human world with the Time Driver. I don’t know how,” Rou said.

“Sakura,” Meiko said.

“Excuse me?” Rou said, sounding offended. I wasn’t sure why.

“The Memoka, Rou,” Meiko said patiently. “I think the Time Driver helped you.”

“Helped him? It blew up in his goddamn face. And that Driver has done it more than once. It’s woken me up in the middle of the night, him messing with it,” Akito said, making a face.

“I think I agree with Meiko,” I said. “Ki’s energy is the same color as Sakura, and the Bright Lady… She must know that Rou is my ally. Even if other people can’t use Year, I think she would have tried to spare him as much as she could.”

“It’s a nice thought.” Rou sighed. “I’m… grateful that after seeing that… Well... I know how it looks.”

“You got Year back, and you risked your life to do it. What’s the problem?” I asked, confused.

Rou watched me, as if unsure if I really meant it. “I ran away… I tried to use Year. And because of me, they have Summer. I should have told you when I remembered it.”

“Why didn't you?” I asked.

“I was hoping it wouldn't be important. I thought the Summer Driver was broken. And that we wouldn't run into Shika or Maneki until we were much, much stronger... But, I should have been more open with you,” Rou said slowly. “If Maneki showed up before I could talk about it...”

And I realized what he meant by it. Asuka had easily swayed my trust, because I didn't understand everything that was going on. “We've had a lot going on,” I said gently, and then grinned and squeezed his hands, “If we kicked everyone out who had somehow accidentally helped the ReMare’s out because of lost memories and tricky situations, I think the only one who’d be left is Meiko. I’ve certainly done my fair share of incredibly idiotic things.”

“I did refuse to fight when I forgot my motivation,” Akito said, raising an eyebrow.

Meiko shook her head. “I’ve been the source of troubles too. Meiki, I should apologize. I shouldn’t have let your identity out at work. And I should have supported you when you objected to Okuda-san's plans for Year,” Meiko said, “Today was a mess. I'm sorry.”

“It's okay,” I said, smiling up at her. “If anything, Okuda-san will be more understanding if I have to take time off to fight. And we got everyone's memories back, even if we didn't get the spirit.”

“What I want to know, Jiro… It looked like the Summer Driver was destroyed? And it was attuned to you, too,” Akito asked Rou.

“I thought so too. But... The pieces remained in the Under. It’s possible they rebuilt it… In which case, Summer might be a bid by one of the ReMares, probably Tigra, to take more power from the others. With Asuka gone, there’s likely an unbalance within their ranks,” Rou said. He looked rather fragile, sitting there in front of me, his memories of a dark and difficult time laid bare before us.

“Then we’ll fight him too. Nobody is going to stop the Mei Brigade,” I said, slinging an arm around Rou, leaning on him heavily. He laughed, and caught himself with one arm.

“Thanks, Meiki,” he said.   
  


 


	13. Cicada Shell

“Boss! I brought you the copies you asked for!” Nisei announced formally.

“Boss! I brought you coffee!”

“Boss! There’s a visitor here for you!”

The whole day was like that. Over and over, Nisei jumped up out of nowhere to announce some job that he had completed. He’d bow stiffly and shout. Several times I had to hush him because I was on air.

“Can’t you go…” I was sorely tempted to tell him to go find radio cable fluid, but I was sure he would break himself trying to find something nonexistent, “Go organize the break room or something?”

“Yes, boss! Thank you for giving me this chance!” Nisei said, bowing again.

When he was out of earshot I collapsed on Meiko's shoulder. “That boy...”

“Are you bored of having an intern already?” she asked. “This morning you were excited, now that he's not pretending to be Year anymore.”

“I'm not bored. I'm the opposite of bored,” I grumbled. “Why are you so amused by this?”

“He's nervous. He'll get better,” Meiko said serenely, pushing me off her shoulder and disappearing into the booth to get some paperwork.

Just as Nisei came up to me, and bowed sharply. “I finished, boss!”

I escaped by the grace of Okuda-san waving me over to her office. “Sorry, kid. I gotta go to a meeting. Just… you can go home,” I said.

He thanked me again and excused himself.

It was blessedly quiet in Okuda-san's office. I sat down on the chair. I hoped she had changed her mind and was going to tell me she was firing the intern after all.

“Meiki-san, I want to thank you for today’s show. You handled questions from listeners about yesterday’s events very gracefully… And I said I would do something to make things up to you for the Year Event,” Okuda-san said, pacing in front of her desk. I watched her from the couch. She hadn’t said anything to that effect, but I wasn’t about to argue with her. “So. I’ve decided. I’ll let you plan the next event. Whatever you want to do. I’ll okay it.”

“Anything?” I said, surprised. I was a little disappointed it wasn’t getting rid of noisy intern, but I liked the thought of having a special show. Maybe something with meat… We did review new restaurants sometimes.

“Well. You know the radio’s guidelines. If you can stay within those, then yes.”

I thought about it. “Alright! I’ll get back to you by the end of the week,” I said.

Okuda-san nodded and dismissed me. I met Meiko at the exit of the radio station.

“So?” Meiko asked. She shifted her purse from one hand to another. She had waited so that she could go home with me.

“She said I can decide what to do for our next event,” I said, as I put on my outside shoes. “I’m not sure what to do. Maybe we can check out some restaurants or something…”

Meiko laughed. “I’m not surprised.”

“Or we could do a concert!” I said, needling her back, “I like it when you sing.”

“I suppose that could be arranged,” Meiko said, leading the way out of the radio office.

“Really?” I said, lighting up like a puppy getting a ball pit for Christmas.

“You’re such a cute doofus, I can’t handle it.” She laughed, covering her face. “Yes, you nerd. If you give me enough advanced warning, I don’t mind.”

“That’s so tempting,” I said as we got to the parking lot. But there was another thing that I was thinking about doing, and I wasn’t sure yet how to put it into words.

We drove back to Momiji Café. Inside, Akito was wiping down tables as Rou sat at the counter with Sharky and Arachne and a pile of origami paper. “Heeey, ladies!” Akito said, pausing his work to shoot finger guns at us.

“Good afternoon, Aki Aki,” Meiko said politely. “It sure is slow again today, isn’t it?”

“Ouch! Right to the heart!” Akito said, clutching his chest dramatically.

“You just missed the rush,” Rou said, looking up from his work.

“What are you making?” I asked, sitting down next to him.

“I’m not sure yet,” Rou admitted, “I was hoping to figure out a way to track Summer, or at the very least warn us of when he’s near. But… We don’t know enough about him.”

“He’s got summer colors, right?” I asked, toying with the light blue and yellow origami papers.

“He did,” Akito said, suddenly serious, pulling up a chair and sitting in it backwards to talk to us. “He absorbed that moth’s light too, which was a fall color.”

“So… Does that mean he’s cannibalizing other ReMares for power?” I asked.

“We can't be certain he's a ReMare yet. He could be a human that they've got confused,” Akito said.

“Oh right,” I said.

“Regardless, it shouldn’t kill spirits any more than putting them in Memokas or origami would,” Rou said, “but I don’t know how they’ve modified the Driver. It’s not something your drivers can do. I designed those to be like a tripod of power. It was the strongest and sturdiest number to make them with, since they’re not backed with the Bright Lady’s energy like Year is. I’m worried his power is going to be… difficult to deal with.”

“Unpredictable and wild,” Meiko said thoughtfully as she sat in a chair properly, giving Akito a look as if insulting him for doing it backwards, “He certainly seems like the type.”

“I’m not sure he can even speak. All he did was scream,” I said.

The three of them looked at me, surprised. I blinked at them, confused at their alarm. “Then… He could be someone who Mothren attacked!” Akito said.

“Oh!” I said, “I suppose so, but he didn’t talk after Mothren was defeated either.”

“It’s worth checking out,” Rou said. “But we kept an eye on the victims during the fight.”

“Not all of them. Nisei-kun didn’t evacuate right away, and who knows how many people Mothren attacked before coming to the event,” Meiko said.

“The kid? I left him passed out in the tent. I doubt it,” Akito said, making a face. “It really was a terrible idea to have him pretend to be Year.

“It could just be a ReMare that can’t talk. Like how the weird otter turtle thing spoke in rhymes,” I said, shrugging. “If it was Nisei-kun, why wouldn’t he say anything after Mothren was defeated? And he certainly was loud at work today.” I said, sighing. “He’s like a dog, barking all the damn time.”

“It’s sort of cute,” Meiko admitted.

“It’s so annoying!” I whined. I noticed Rou had started folding origami. “Did you decide something?” I asked.

“I can't figure out his energy signature like this. But, if we fight another ReMare, I want to be ready for him.” He held up a paper throwing star. He had made it with two different dual colored origami papers. One was orange and indigo, and the other was yellow and sky blue. Only small slivers of indigo and yellow showed, but they were there. “If one of us throws this at him, we’ll be able to track him,” Rou explained and handed it to me, “Could you write Summer on it?”

I nodded and carefully wrote the kanji for Summer with the colorless Memoka. “To that effect… I was thinking of an event we could cover at the station,” I said slowly.

Meiko glanced at me, but said nothing.

“I was thinking… What if we did something for the old Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital?” Akito stopped cleaning, and his expression got kind of intense, so I continued quickly, “People… They think it burned down, but it’s still there. I want to do something to clean it up and maybe… I don’t know. If people want to use it as a hospital again, they should be able to.” I shrugged awkwardly, “But I didn’t want to do anything like that without talking it over with you, Aki. I’m worried it would definitely attract strong ReMares, so… I don’t know. I want to do something, but it seems like it’s not in the spirit of the apology I’m being given, since it still would put listeners in danger…” I trailed off and glanced up at Akito. “It was named after your brother, right? So, your parents donated, right? It doesn’t seem right that it’s been forgotten.”

Akito was quiet for a long moment, leaning his chin on his fist. “I’d like that. I miss my little bro.” Meiko reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. He glanced up at her. “You might be right, though. I’d worry about it being a dangerous move.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” Rou said, suddenly.

“What?” I asked.

“Akito’s mom is a sweetheart. And she’d probably be willing to get my mother involved. They’re both pretty powerful ladies. They could organize a small group of volunteers to help. We wouldn’t have to noise it around,” Rou explained.

“We could do something safer for the show,” Meiko said, liking that plan better.

“No, if she wants to do a show… Why not prerecord it? Then, when it goes live, if a ReMare or Summer gets wind of it, they’ll show up then,” Rou explained, “And we’ll be ready for them.”

“I always thought they just sort of, showed up because they sensed something was going on,” I said, still concerned.

“Maybe… But things you report seem to have a higher chance of ReMares showing up. It’s why I listen to it, remember?” Rou said.

“Or one of the reasons anyway,” Akito commented with a smirk. Rou shot him a glare.

“The other concern is, are we ready to fight another High General if one happens to show up?” Meiko said.

“I think we can. If we do it right, we could have a plan ready. And we wouldn't have an audience like with Mothren,” I said. “Akito?”

“It sounds dangerous.” Akito broke into a grin. “Let’s do it!”

Preparations went smoothly. Akito’s mom was still thrilled that he remembered her again, and wasn’t just showing up randomly after having subconsciously transformed into Fall. She was willing to do anything for us. And that included convincing Meiji Katsumi into rounding up some volunteers to help us.

Rou had made himself absent for that meeting. After it was finished, I went to find him. He was out in the alley, covered in grease and kneeling next to his motorcycle.

“You doing okay?” I asked, sitting down next to him and leaning on his shoulder.

“I’m fine,” Rou said, focused on his work.

I was quiet on that one, just sitting there with him. Finally he sighed and said, “You don’t believe that.”

“Not for a second,” I said, looking up at him.

“You and your puppy dog eyes,” Rou said. He sounded annoyed, but his expression had softened.

“Mmhm. So?” I asked.

“It’s just hard. I miss my family,” he sighed. “I miss you guys too, even though you’re here…”

“We’ve still got a lot of memories missing. I know. I felt like that with Meiko, too,” I said.

“Yeah,” Rou said, “And… I can’t do anything about it. And every time I think I can… I can’t.” He clenched his fists over his knees.

I lifted my head so I could look directly at him. “Rou. You’ve done so much for us. Even if you’re not the one throwing punches, we wouldn’t have made it this far without you. We’d still be stuck in a loop about that stupid city mascot. Or worse.”

“And if it wasn’t for you, I’d be dead,” Rou sighed, “It’s not really a comparison, is it?”

I reached out and smushed his face between my hands. “Don’t be so melodramatic. You’ve saved my life too. It’s not a contest. You’re my friend and I will protect you. You’re an important member of the Mei Brigade, and your battles are ours. So.” I let his face go and rested my hands on his shoulders, “We will fight the ReMare that stole your family’s memories. We're getting stronger every day. Because of you. And we’ll make it safe for Ki and the other spirits again. And we’ll do it together, okay?”

Rou nodded, and then stood up. I pretended not to see him rub at his eyes with the back of his wrist. “Come on. I need to wash up,” he said, reaching down to help me up.

I clasped his hand and pulled myself up. “Are you going to come to the event?” I asked. “Katsumi will be there.”

“I… Yeah. It’s important to Akito,” Rou said, squeezing my hand. “And to you.”

I nodded solemnly. “Thanks. It'll be reassuring to have you there,” I said. “Last time I was at the hospital...”

“Asuka?”

I nodded.

“I'll be there.”

And he was. The day of the event was sunny. Nothing about the hospital had changed. It still was overgrown, and dusty. But my friends were there, and a crew of thirty volunteers, ran by Akito and Rou’s mothers. There was laughter and chatter, and it made the place feel alive.

“Thank you for coming out to help us today, Katsumi-san,” I said.

“Well. It’s not a problem. I was surprised this place still exists. I thought it burnt down years ago,” Katsumi said, looking around. “Hey! You! Bring the water coolers over to the tent!” she shouted at a couple of volunteers. “Although it doesn’t surprise me much after I realized I had done that event for Puffy-kun like, ten times.” She glanced suspiciously over towards where Akito and Rou were chatting with Akito’s mother. “I suppose I owe that boy an apology.”

“I’m sure he would appreciate it. It’s hard on him, not being acknowledged by his family,” I said.

Katsumi gave me a sharp look, “I didn’t say I’d go that far. He was right about the monsters. I don’t believe he’s my son though. Even if I forgot, there’s no record of it. There would have to be a record of it.”

“I’m… I’m sorry you feel that way, Katsumi-san,” I said, cringing inwardly for Rou’s sake. “I’ve got to go get set up for an interview with Doctor Meiaki.” I bowed out politely and escaped to the radio van that Meiko was setting up.

“Any luck?” Meiko asked.

“None. At least she might talk to him like he’s not totally crazy though,” I sighed.

“Do we have any idea who took her memories?” Meiko asked.

“He thinks it was Shika. Which is pretty scary, considering,” I said. The image of Year’s compound eyes shattered and the creepy deer ripping the Time Driver off of me was horrifying. And it was terrifying to think that if we did manage to defeat Shika, I’d have to remember how it actually felt. I shuddered, and reminded myself what I had told Reina. It would hurt, but it would be better to have those memories.

Or at the very least, I thought it was a suitable price to pay for the huge chunk of memories of my friends that it had stolen. I had forgotten going to school with Akito and Rou. And forgotten that I was Year for years. It was too big of a chunk of my life to have missing.

“It is. But you’ve grown a lot stronger since then. And so have Aki Aki and I,” Meiko said.

“Thanks,” I said, feeling bolstered. “Let’s get our fall boy over here and get this started.” I waved at him and he strolled over after clapping Rou on the shoulder. He sat between Meiko and I. I set him up with a microphone and head set.

“This isn’t live, so please be careful not to give away the date or anything like that,” I reminded him.

“I know, I know,” He said, waving it off dismissively. “Let’s begin.”

Meiko took that as her cue to turn on the mics. I started our sign in phrase, “Good morning, Oara! This is Kimura Mei.”

“And Koda Mei. This is FM 98.4 Mei Brigade!” Meiko announced.

“Today we’ve got a special program lined up for you! We’re here at Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital,” I announced.

“I know some of you might be confused. It was rumored that it burnt down a few years ago, and warehouses were built in its place.” Meiko continued.

“But, as many of you are aware, we’ve been experiencing some difficulties in Oara because of ink monsters called ReMares. It turns out that this hospital specialized in protecting victims of their attacks,” I explained, “So of course, ReMares tried to make everyone forget about it.”

“Today we have Doctor Meiaki Akito here with us. Good morning, Meiaki-sensei,” Meiko said politely.

“Good morning, Meiko and Meiki. I’m happy to be here today,” Akito said, his voice professional, but there was a glint of mischief in his eyes. “Just let me say, I’m a huge fan of your radio show.” He winked at Meiko, who fixed him with a bland look.

“Is that so? I am terribly grateful for,” Meiko started, and I noticed she was slipping from polite to ridiculously formal.

“Thank you!” I interrupted, covering before the two managed to make the contrived politeness into obvious teasing. “Your name is on the hospital, can you tell us a little bit about it?”

“Ah, well, it's my little brother's name. Not mine. Meiaki is pretty common around here, so I’m not related to all of them, but…” I frowned at him. This was a dumb time to object to associating another Meiaki to him. He seemed to realize it, so he stopped himself. “Right. My family made a donation to the hospital when he suddenly lost all of his memories. It was my pride to help people like him recover, or at the very least, remain safe from further attacks. Unfortunately, my brother passed away shortly before the place was abandoned,” Akito explained.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Meiko said, genuinely polite this time.

“Me too. Aki- I mean Meiaki-sensei,” I started. Akito smirked at the slip up, and Meiko elbowed him in the side, “What would your family like to see happen with this place?” I asked.

“Well, for now, my mother and I would like to see it cleaned up and restored as much as possible, with an aim for eventually hiring new doctors and reopening the place as a sanctuary for people who have been injured by ReMares. And of course for those who have other brain injuries and ailments as well. For a long time, we were the top hospital in Japan, if not the world. In Togo-kun’s honor, I’d like to restore that,” Akito said, and his voice had a quality to it that I hadn’t really heard with him before. I’d gotten used to him being the sarcastic tease who fought beside me. And I knew he had a serious side, but this was something different. There was a lot of passion behind his words and it moved me.

“That’s really beautiful,” I said, meaning it.

“Well, I have you to thank for helping us organize this event, Meiki. And Year. You’ve really helped me remember my dream,” Akito said seriously.

“Well, you know. I was really inspired by your story,” I said, embarrassed.

Meiko looked up sharply at the sound of arguing across the parking lot. “We’ll take you to a music break now as we get started clearing up garbage and dust here!” Meiko announced, cutting the mics off. “Rou’s getting into a fight with Katsumi,” she said, tilting her head over towards him. Akito didn’t need much other warning besides that. He was striding confidently towards them before I could get my headset off. Meiko shouted at Akito for throwing his headset to the ground and sighed when he didn't listen. “Go ahead. I’ll take care of things here.”

I went.

“I won’t hear another word!” Katsumi-san shouted, spinning away from Rou. “I don’t care what you say! You’re not my son!”

Rou balled his fists, “Why the hell would I lie about this?” he shouted after her. A few terrified volunteers quietly retreated to avoid getting pulled into their argument.

Akito flung an arm over Rou’s shoulders. “Hi there, Katsumi-san. Did my mom show you were the face masks are?” he asked casually. She froze and turned back around.

“Good morning, Meiaki-sensei,” she muttered. “Yes, she did.”

“Good. I’d hate for her to have to hear such things on today of all days,” Aki said, “I mean, her son died.” He wielded his words like a weapon. “You just forgot yours. At least you have a second chance, you know?” He smiled, and I could see the tension slowly dissipating from Rou.

The same did not happen with Katsumi. “I’m sorry you heard that,” Katsumi said, coldly, and she bowed formally.

“Oh no worries. As I said, I am glad you have a second chance. Here! I'll help. Did anyone properly introduce you to him? This is Meiji Rou. He’s a very close friend of mine. After the hospital was abandoned and I lost my job, he took me in and helped me start a café.” Akito said, ruffling Rou’s hair.

“I have no idea who he is,” Katsumi said, crossing her arms. Rou tensed up again.

“Enough, I don’t know why I thought I could deal with her,” Rou snapped, and pulled away from Akito. He stomped off to the supply tent.

“Of all the,” Katsumi snarled after.

“Excuse me. Please be civil today or I will ask you to leave,” I said, my tone cold. “I appreciate your cooperation, but I will not have fighting today.”

Katsumi stared at me, and I stared back, looking down at the shorter woman. She broke away first, and stomped off to go tell some volunteers to get to work.

“Good lord, I don’t know how she doesn’t see that they’re related.” Akito let out a sigh and shook his head. “What a stubborn mother-son duo.”

“Do you think one of us should go after him?” I asked.

“Nah. I just saw Meiko slip into the supply tent. She’ll calm him down.”

I thought about it and agreed. Meiko and Rou had become pretty good friends over the past month. And she stayed pretty calm, even when others were riled up. “Alright. Let’s get to work then.” We started sorting bits of rubble into a large dumpster. Weeds were pulled up. Not long after, Rou and Meiko appeared, working quietly beside us.

After the parking lot was mostly tidied up, we took a break to interview Akito's mother. “Hi, Meiaki Honatsu-san. Thank you for sponsoring and organizing this event,” I said.

“It’s no trouble at all! You know I’m always happy to help you lovely girls. Akkun has been so happy lately, and I know it’s because you’ve befriended him,” Akito’s mother said, sounding a little dreamy.

“I’m glad you think so,” I responded, “You’ve done a lot of community service work for Oara. Funding the hospital, the president of the local PTA, and more. I really want to thank you for all your hard work and dedication.”

“Oh, yes. My husband, Takahito-san, he loves this town so much, and since he’s so busy, I’m happy to do both our share of community work. You know we met at a garbage clean up just like this when we were in university? It was lovely,” she said happily.

“Meiaki Takahito? Your husband is Congressman Meiaki?” Meiko asked, her eyes wide. I glanced at her, confused. The name sounded familiar, but I didn't pay much attention to politics.

“Oh yes. Sweet man,” Honatsu agreed.

The interview ended after a few more pleasantries. We tried not to mention Togo. It seemed she still didn’t really remember him. Or rather, it was really hard to tell what she remembered and what she didn’t, and we didn’t want to upset her, especially on record.

Akito came strolling over with a few cans of tea. He tossed one to me, and then handed the other two to Meiko and his mother. “You didn’t tell us your dad was a congressman,” Meiko said.

“Didn’t I? Oh well. What would you have done? Start being super formal with me?” Akito asked, raising his eyebrows. “Oh, Aki Aki-sama?” he said, mimicking her soft voice.

“I was a political science major in university and I’m in charge of the political news on the station,” Meiko said sternly, ignoring his jest.

“Aha. See, I’m not gonna talk to that guy, so I’d rather not be your connection. Sorry. You can ask my mom though, I guess.” Akito's voice was light and cheerful, although his words were edged with the sarcastic bite that had surfaced frequently when he had forgotten about Togo and his desire to fight the ReMares.

“I see. I’m sorry I brought it up then,” Meiko said quietly.

Akito faltered. I think he had assumed she’d banter back in her quiet deadpan way. He didn’t expect a sincere apology. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s get back to work. I think Jiro disappeared into the building to clean. We should go find him in case he decides to get into an argument with Katsumi-san again.”

“I don’t see why they don’t get along. Rou-kun is such a lovely boy. Helping my dear Akkun so much. Maybe I’ll talk to her,” Honatsu mused.

“Don’t worry about it, mum. We’ll take care of it. She just doesn’t understand what’s going on. Like what happened to me.” Akito hugged her and we went into the hospital.

The volunteers were doing their best. All of the broken glass had been swept up, and a few people were running bent over down the halls, pushing dust clothes with their hands. “I better take charge of the medical equipment,” Akito said. “Remind anyone you see that medical waste and such needs to be handled by an expert.”

Meiko and I decided to help with personal effects. Things with names on them that weren’t badly damaged were sorted into neat little boxes and labeled. Things without names were put into unmarked boxes. We weren’t sure if anyone would be able to claim them, but they at least deserved to have a chance to be found by their proper owners. Katsumi had promised that they would go to a special lost and found in the city hall.

A couple hours later I found Akito standing in front of his old office, his expression unreadable. Rou was working on a nearby door's electronic lock. “Do you remember, Jiro? When you came here with the Autumn Driver?”

“Yes,” Rou said. “It was after... You went right back to work.”

“Kind of a cold thing to do, wasn't it?” Akito laughed bitterly.

Rou put down his work, and moved to Akito's side. “No. You didn't want it to happen to anyone again. That's why I brought you Autumn instead of using it myself. You needed to be able to do something.”

“I need more than that,” Akito said, and it sent chills down my spine.

“I know,” Rou said, and his voice also was hard with frustration and helplessness. I backed away slowly, and continued working, feeling a knot of guilt that I had eavesdropped. Guilty that I had hesitated when someone I cared about had forgotten.

By the end of the day, we had made a lot of progress. We still would have to call in some specialists, although Rou had surprised me by making a few handy fixes. He even got the big electronic locked doors open with the help of a small generator.

I applauded him when the first one clicked open.

“I do this kind of stuff all the time,” Rou said, standing up and tapping my vest pocket where I kept my Time Driver. “This is easy.” Still, he held himself with pride, so I don't think he was actually that annoyed. And there were limits to his skill. We would still need plumbers and construction workers and more before the hospital could be used.

But it was a start. And we had done enough to set our trap.

We aired the show a week later. Meiko and I had taken special leave to lay in wait at the hospital. The tents were still set up, to give the appearance of activity. Rou passed out throwing stars to each of us. He seemed a bit surly about something, but we let him be.

“It’ll start airing soon,” Meiko said, listening in with one ear bud from her portable radio.

“What do we do if nothing shows up?” Akito asked, stretching lazily.

“It’s not like it’ll be a waste. We did this for the hospital. Searching for Summer just kind of was a side effect,” I said. “We’ll find him one way or another though.”

“It’s on!” Meiko called. We all froze, but nothing happened.

I laughed nervously. “Of course something wouldn’t happen right away. Let’s see if we can bring some more garbage out,” I said, heading towards the hospital.

Blots appeared throughout the parking lot. A lot of them. “Or we can take care of this garbage. Guys?” I asked, already getting the Time Driver out. “Henshin!” Meiko and Akito echoed me. I swiped the Time Driver with the colorless marker, and white light swirled around me. Fall and Winter’s sigil passed over Meiko and Akito.

We quickly got to work, punching and kicking down blots. I sliced one down that was advancing on Rou. “Find cover!” I shouted at him.

“Shut up!” he snapped, “Behind you!” I spun and slashed at the sneaking blot with the Prism Blade.

I turned back to see what he was doing and he had disappeared. “Rou?!” I shouted.

I didn’t hear an answer. I punched a blot as I looked around desperately for him. There was a dull roar, and he came crashing through some of the blots with Fall’s motorcycle. He revved the Harvester's engine and spun the bike, knocking over several blots that sought to take advantage of his lack of armor.

He glared at me from under his helmet, daring me to say something about it. I saluted him, convinced he had a handle on things. He was a better motorcyclist than me, and he knew how they worked. He’d be fine. I jump kicked a blot that was creeping up behind Fall, and ended up back to back with him.

“Is it just blots?” Fall grumbled, “They’re such a pain.”

“It’s not like they’re actually strong,” I said, slicing through three of them. They were a lot easier than fighting a full-fledged ReMare, let alone another High ReMare.

“Yeah, but there’s so many. It’s like swatting at gnats,” he said.

Winter cleared a wide berth with her massive sword, “Knock on Wood,” She said, joining us and thumping Fall on the back of his helmet with her fist.

“Ow, what was that for?” He said, rubbing his helmet.

“Don’t go inviting trouble,” she said.

A second motorcycle pulled up. “Too late,” I said. It skidded to a stop, and the rider stood up, ignoring the blots around him. The blots scattered away from him, but made no move to attack him.

“Who is that?” Fall demanded, “Hey! You! It’s not safe here!” Fall shouted, waving a hand as if to shoo him away like an annoying dog.

The rider took his helmet off.

“Nisei?” I said, at the same time Fall said “Togo?”

“Togo! Get out of here!” Fall said, running towards him. Meiko caught him by the arm, and he shook her off. Rou drove in front of him to cut him off. “Get out of my way!” Fall snarled, “That’s my brother!” He went around Rou.

“Fall! Think! Your brother died! We went to his funeral!” Rou called after him.

“Go to hell! He’s here, and he’s in trouble!” Fall shouted, running towards him. He stopped short of the boy, who was merely watching Fall with incurious eyes. “Togo, you’re alive! It's me, Akito! I was… I’m so sorry…”

The boy smiled slowly, “Hen. Shin.” The sigil for Summer passed over him, and Summer’s armor appeared.

Fall took a step back, staggering. “Togo?”

Summer made a feral growl and launched himself at Fall. Fall couldn’t even defend himself. Summer crashed into him, throwing him across the parking lot. Winter and I rushed forward to put ourselves between Fall and Summer.

“I won’t let you hurt him!” I said, switching out Year for Golden. The claws of light seemed like a better weapon against him. We clashed, grappling on the ground. Winter stepped back to Fall, making sure none of the blots descended upon him.

Fall was starting to get up, staggering in pain. “Don’t… Golden! Stop! That’s Togo!” he begged, shrugging off Winter again to go running towards us. He pulled me off and shoved me back. He stood between us. “Please! Togo! It’s me!” He dropped his transformation and Akito stood there, vulnerable.

“Akito!” I shouted, trying to go after him as he walked calmly towards Summer, but a crowd of Blots had started swarming around me.

Summer snarled and launched himself at Aki. Summer kicked Akito again, and he went sliding back, clutching his side. I caught him before he hit the side of the building again. There was no time. He was coming at us again. I turned so that I was shielding Aki with my body.

“No. You. Don't!” Rou shouted.

Summer stopped short. I glanced back. Rou had thrown Arachne at him. She had landed on the ground near him, and placed a web trap on the ground. A multi-colored throwing star stuck to Summer’s shoulder. “Get Akito out of here!” Rou shouted.

I nodded and scooped Akito up and threw him over my shoulder. He struggled weakly, kicking me as I carried him off. Winter followed us, threatening any blots with her massive sword to keep them off of us. “Can you add my bike to Rou’s?” I asked. She nodded and pressed the button to make it change into a side car. I dumped Akito into it, and put up a forbidding hand when he tried to struggle out.

His eyes fairly glowed with hatred and anger. I flinched, but he was too injured to keep fighting.

Rou retreated back to us. “Here. Switch,” he commanded, taking back his own bike, and giving me Fall’s. “We’ll regroup for now. I don’t think Arachne can hold him for long, and I don't want to be around when the web breaks. Not with...” he glanced at Akito. I nodded and mounted the Harvester, Winter climbing on behind me.

We escaped, just as Summer broke free of Arachne’s webs.

 

 


	14. Trust

By the time we got back to Momiji Café, Akito had passed out. I carried him to his bed and put him down gently. “How good are either of you at first aid? He’s pretty banged up,” I asked.

“I can do it,” Rou said quietly, going to tend to Akito with a gentle efficiency.

Meiko and I sat in the kitchen, tending to our own small injuries. Nothing terribly serious, but enough to warrant looking after. “So…” I said, sighing.

“It was Nisei,” Meiko said, running a hand over her hair.

“Or Togo. Is it possible he’s still alive?” I asked.

Meiko shrugged. She didn’t have an answer. Neither of us could. We didn’t remember Akito’s brother.

After a while, Rou came back to sit with us. “He’ll be okay,” Rou said.

“Will he? We can’t fight if he’s throwing himself at Summer’s mercy,” Meiko said.

“I know. I didn’t expect…” Rou sighed.

“Is it really Togo?” I asked.

“I… don’t think so. I clearly remember the funeral. ReMares can take away memories, but they can’t give them.”

“So it's not him,” Meiko said, sounding relieved. “We can convince Akito somehow.”

Rou frowned. “I wish I could say it with that much confidence. ReMares can't do that, but humans are resilient. Our brains will replace missing memories with made up memories in order to make things make sense.”

“Still… If it is Togo… Why?” I said, gesturing over at Akito’s room.

“I don’t know. I could guess, but I don’t like it…” Rou said, trailing off. “The best case scenario is that it is that Nisei kid, and he just happens to look like Togo, and has fallen in with a bad crowd. Worst case... Maybe a ReMare is copying his body to mess with Akito.”

“Worst case, a ReMare has possessed his body, like Ki and Rou,” Meiko added slowly, sounding thoughtful. Rou shot her a wide eyed stare. “Maneki and Anubis knew about you, didn’t they? And they would have had access to the broken parts from the first Summer Driver. They might enjoy making Akito’s brother fight against him.”

“Ki isn't like that! We work together,” Rou objected.

“I know,” Meiko said, touching Rou’s shoulder, “But you both have all your memories, and Ki is on our side. Togo wouldn’t have his memories, even if he is still alive. He wouldn’t be able to stop the ReMare from doing anything.”

It was a somber thought. One I didn’t relish explaining to Akito. “What do we do?” I asked.

“We get my brother back,” Akito said, leaning against the door frame to his room.

“You should still be in bed!” Rou said, standing up and going to him.

“Get away from me, traitor,” Akito said lightly, his words edged with poison.

Rou looked stricken.

“It’s like Meiko said. It’s your fault they got the Summer Driver and knew you were not human,” Akito said, each word dripping with venom, “And it’s your fault I couldn’t help Togo!”

“Akito, that’s not fair, Summer was going to kill you!” I said, stepping between them.

He glared up at me, “Don’t think I forgot your part in this fight. You should have let me handle it!”

“How do you suggest we save Togo, then? Dropping your transformation and going in for a hug clearly didn’t work, Aki Aki,” Meiko said, harsh but sympathetic. “If he really is your brother, we will do everything in our power to help him. And if you want us to let you handle it, figure out a way that doesn’t involve getting yourself killed like an idiot.”

Akito was taken aback by her fierceness. As much as he pretended like he was afraid of her, it surprised him that she would speak sharply at him.

“She's right,” I said softly. “Come up with another way.”

“I miss him too, Aki…” Rou said. He stared down at his hands. “I’m sorry… I know it’s my fault. But I don’t want to lose you too.”

A complicated emotion crossed Akito’s face, and he staggered, clutching his wounds. “Dammit!” he shouted, “Dammit, dammit, dammit!” He continued as he sunk down to the ground. I knelt next to him, and put an arm around him.

“Akito. Think about it. Go back to bed and think,” I said, helping him up gently and leading him back to bed. He didn’t say anything more, but he allowed me to gently cover him in his quilt.

After I came back, Meiko was guiding a miserable looking Rou out of the kitchen. I followed them. She left him in the cafe, and I sat next to him. He leaned against my shoulder, staring off in the distance. A few minutes later, Meiko came back with a mug of coffee for Rou. He clutched it like a lifeline. We sat quietly for a long time. I wanted to break the silence, but all of the words felt wrong.

It was Rou who finally did. “I did hit him with one of the throwing stars. So if we need to find him later, we can.”

I nodded, and a thought occurred to me. And it seemed like it would be better to deal with it as quickly as possible. “We should go back to the office to talk to Okuda-san about Nisei-kun,” I said. “Are you going to be alright?”

Rou hesitated and then nodded. “He’s hurting. He didn't mean it.”

“If you need us, call,” Meiko said, patting his shoulder. “Even if all you want is to talk.”

“Thanks,” Rou said.

Back at the radio station, things were fairly calm. It was Oscar’s radio block, so soft French music played over the speakers in the office. “Nawata-san? Is Okuda-san still in?” I asked as I changed my shoes.

“Yes, she’s in her office. She seems pretty happy with your show today. Says she got some nice calls from the hospital,” Nawata said, “Good job!”

“Thanks,” I said, distracted. The success of the show was far from my thoughts. “Meiko and I need to talk to her.”

“I’ll let her know,” Nawata said. Meiko and I sat in common table to do some paperwork while we waited for Okuda to be ready. “Alright. She’ll see you now.”

We let ourselves into the office. “Great job today, ladies! It’s nice to see you really fostering the community spirit!”

“You’re welcome,” I said distractedly again, “Listen. We need to talk to you about the intern.”

“Meian-kun? What about him?” She asked.

“Do you have his resume? How did you select him?” Meiko demanded. She was angry. It was a quiet fury, but it was incredibly intense. I felt a rush of fondness for her. Seeing this gentle lady on the aggressive to defend people had always inspired me. Even when we were little and the injustice was that some bigger kid was pushing a little one around on the playground.

It surprised Okuda, “Well, yes. He applied, He was willing to do the Year thing. He’s a respectful kid. What’s the problem?”

“We saw him today. He’s that other Rider that attacked Year and the others at that last event,” I explained.

“He’s been here all day though.” She ducked her head out of the office door. “Meian-kun!” She called. He hurried to the office and bowed deeply in front of us. “Have you left the office today?”

“No, boss!” Nisei said, bowing sharply again. “I’ve been helping Nawata-san file paperwork.”

“See? Ladies, are you sure it wasn’t just someone who looked like Meian-kun? Or perhaps your memories are fuddled?” she asked.

It was definitely Nisei. Down to the clothes he was wearing. “Perhaps… It might have been a copy,” I said slowly, glancing at Meiko. She had a carefully bland expression. I worried about what she was thinking behind it.

“You’re the expert!” Okuda said cheerfully, as if that settled everything. “Do you need to discuss anything about work?”

I watched Nisei for a moment. He stared back. There seemed to be something about his expression that was not quite a smirk. “I… I guess not. We’ll see you tomorrow. See you.” I bowed slightly on the way out, and Meiko copied. She waited until we were back in the parking lot to explode.

“That woman! Who is fuddled? It’s clearly her! Don’t act like we’re some kind of liars!” Meiko started pacing, building up furious energy.

“It’s not her fault. At least we can keep tabs on him at work,” I said.

“That piece of… You saw how bad Aki Aki’s messed up!” Meiko said, gesturing wildly in the vague direction of Momiji Café.

I hugged her to stop her from pacing. “I know, I know.”

At first she was stiff in my arms, but she relaxed slowly, the energy diffusing. She sniffled and held onto me for a long moment before pulling away. “Thank you,” she said.

“Mmhm. Hey. I have an idea,” I said, without realizing what it was before I said it.

“What?”

“Let’s get a pizza and bring it back to Akito. And when he’s feeling better, let’s all go up to the shrine again,” I said. “Maybe the Bright Lady can help us.”

“The first step is always food, isn’t it?” Meiko said dryly, although I could see a hint of a smile around her eyes.

“Eating in situations like these puts things into perspective and prevents shock! That’s why you get cookies when you give blood,” I lectured as if I was an expert.

“You almost sound like you know what you’re talking about,” she said.

“I do!”

“Yeah, you’re right. Let’s go.”

We bought a large pizza with four different quarters of toppings at the local Pizza Cooc, and brought it back to Momiji Café. Inside, Akito had moved to one of the dining tables, and was staring blankly into a cup of coffee. Rou was working on his computer, as usual. The room was tense.”Special delivery!” I called out, trying to sound cheerful. Rou looked up.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Pizza. I know that after I get my ass kicked, I’m always really hungry,” I said, setting the warm box down on a table.

“You’re always really hungry,” Meiko said, amused. I shrugged in agreement and served up a few places for myself. Meiko swatted me aside. “I thought this was for Aki Aki?” she said, and busied herself with serving a plate with one of each of the flavors, before setting it down in front of him. “Eat,” she commanded. Akito ignored the plate. She stared him down.

I took a bite of pizza. “We talked to Okuda-san. She said Nisei was there all day. Rou, you said that a ReMare might be able to copy the form of a human?” I asked.

Rou thought about it. “It's possible. I know the High ReMares would be able to do it. There’s nothing really determining what their human form looks like besides their mood.”

Meiko was glaring at Akito, who was still staring at his coffee cup. He glanced up and sighed, and then took a bite of pizza. Meiko smiled. “Good!”

Once he had started, he ate another four slices besides the ones Meiko had given him, and had downed the rest of his coffee. “Rou. Can you make something that enhances Arachne’s traps?” Akito asked, and set down the coffee mug with a heavy thud.

Rou looked startled that Akito was talking to him. “Yes. I think I could. I’d need your help, Meiki,” Rou said. I nodded in agreement. “It would help if we could attune the cornerstones to Summer, but...”

“That’s fine. I’ll only need a little time.” Akito said. “I have a plan.”

“Great! What is it?” I asked.

“I want a chance to talk to him. I just need you as back up. I’ll handle the rest,” Akito said.

Meiko frowned at him.

“I promise, I'm not trying to get myself killed. Trust me.”

The next day at work was decidedly awkward. To an outsider, it seemed normal enough. But every now and then I could have sworn I caught Nisei smirking at Meiko and me. No one else seemed to notice it. Even Meiko said I was being a little jumpy.

We couldn’t do anything yet. Akito was still not in the best shape for fighting. He had taken a blow from a Kamen Rider without his own power shielding him. It was lucky he wasn't in the hospital.

So I convinced the boys to go with Meiko and me up to the temple. They were reluctant. Both of them were bruised deeply. Not in the physical sense, at least not Rou. But Akito’s accusations and Katsumi’s denial had struck Rou hard. He was by turns, sullen and overly solicitous to anything Akito might need. And Akito… well. I knew how fierce of a feeling the Otter Turtle ReMare had taken from him. And if he had been apathetic before, he was burning with intensity now. They didn't want to pray. They wanted to fight.

I insisted though, for those exact reasons.

It was quiet at the temple, aside from sounds of nature. “This is stupid,” Akito grumbled, “She’s not going to show up.”

I glanced at him, and he went quiet.

“Oho, are you taking notes from me?” Meiko asked, amused.

“I think this is important. We need healing. And we need protection. There is a chance that Nisei is a High ReMare and not Togo at all,” I said firmly.

“I don’t deserve to be here…” Rou muttered miserably.

I flashed him a look too, and he looked away. “Don’t question the Bright Lady’s Champion.” I said, summoning a sense of authority, even though I really didn’t know much about her besides that she was beautiful and I had to protect her and her kind.

Rou knew that and snorted, but he didn’t argue further.

I knelt at the shrine, and Meiko knelt next to him. I offered a chain of origami paper that I had folded together to look like a zigzag, like the shide that hung from the temple. I had written a prayer on it with the colorless Memoka.

Rou came up next to me, curious about the paper. “What’s this?”

“I was hoping it would make it easier to reach her,” I said, “I don’t know. I might not be the best champion… But… Well… I haven’t really checked in since I got the Time Driver back, and I thought I should.” I said, sheepishly, “I want to show her how strong we’ve become, so that she knows she was right to trust us, even if we do make mistakes sometimes. I think… We’ve come so far, it’s appropriate to ask for her blessing again.”

Akito knelt quietly at the altar. I glanced at him, and his expression was unreadable. If he could grasp some small measure of peace, then the trip would be worth it.

“It’s good, I think.” Rou said, standing up, and patted me on the head. I smoothed my hair over reflexively. He took out his box of paper and fashioned a pink fox, and put it on the altar too. He offered a mint green piece to Meiko, and she accepted it, and settled to folding it into a horned beetle. “Akito…?” He said, offering a bronze foil piece of origami.

Akito glanced up. After a long moment, he took it. He folded it carefully into a momiji leaf, before placing it on the altar next to the others.

“One more,” I said, and took a piece of blue paper from Rou. I folded it to look like a cicada. “For Togo,” I said.

Akito looked at me, frowning slightly. It looked like he was thinking hard about something. “Thank you,” he said.

I took his hand casually. “He’s part of the Mei Brigade too,” I said. Rou captured Akito’s other hand, and Meiki took my free hand. “We’re going to do whatever we can to help him.”

“Whatever we can,” Akito echoed, and seemed more at ease than I had seen him all week.

“Well, well, well. Isn’t this precious, Foxy?” A soft voice purred from behind us. We broke apart, turning to address the threat.

Maneki was perched in a tree, watching us with glowing cat eyes. She was striped with blue, orange, purple and indigo. “Oh, no. Carry on. I was enjoying your foolish sentimentality.”

“Maneki!” Rou shouted, and shifted to a fighting stance.

“What are you going to do, Foxy? My little friend has your Driver,” she laughed. “But sure, dash your handsome body against my fists. I won’t mind.”

Akito was already transforming. He ran forward, “What did you do to Togo?” He demanded, both glaives out and one posed to throw.

“Togo? Hm. Togo, Togo, Togo... Oh right. Niseimon!” Maneki called, and Nisei strolled out from behind some of the trees. “Go ahead and greet your brother, love.”

“Akkun. It’s a pleasure.” Nisei said stiffly, and bowed.

“Togo! Why?” Fall demanded.

“I’m alive, big brother. Isn’t that enough?” he asked.

Fall was quiet. “Yes…” He glanced back at us and nodded, before throwing a set of four white origami spiders, not the light blue ones I had attuned to Summer, down around us, followed by Arachne. A massive purple net appeared before the four white spiders, catching the three of us in it's grip.

“Aki!” Rou shouted, struggling against the net.

“No!” I said, as Fall turned to follow Togo away. Meiko brought her arms around herself tightly, staring after him with burning anger.

“Oh, that’s too bad. It’s fairer this way, isn’t it? That florescent bitch shouldn’t get all the all the human pets. It’s rude to the rest of us,” Maneki said, hopping down from the tree. “Toodles, darlings. I’ll play with you later!”

“Shit, no!” Rou shouted, and punched the ground with his fist. “That idiot!”

“He meant to do that. From the beginning. I knew Rou should have held onto the trap!” Meiko said fiercely.

I glanced behind at the temple, feeling pitiful and foolish. All I had wanted was to smooth things over between us all. Now… I didn’t know what they would do with him. And I didn’t know what to do about it. He had went on his own free will…

And then I noticed something. “His origami. It’s glowing,” I said, looking back at the others. I hesitated, and reached out to touch the origami leaf. “It’s warm…” The purple net flashed bronze and disappeared, earlier than it was supposed to.

Meiko frowned, and studied it. Rou, just stared after where Akito had gone. “What does that mean?” Meiko said.

I wasn’t sure, but I wanted to trust him. I straightened up. “Let’s find Summer.”

With a copy of the multicolored throwing star affixed to the Pair Device, we followed the signal. It brought us to the riverside.

“Here again,” Meiko said, looking around. The cherry trees were all bright green now, after the rainy season. The river also smelled a lot better, now that the otter turtle ReMare was no longer mucking up the river.

“There’s going to be fireworks here tonight, and an obon festival tomorrow,” Rou said. “Their target, I'm guessing.”

“Probably.” I said. There were people already setting up, and staking their claim for getting a good spot to see the fireworks. “Let’s split up and see if we can find them. If we do, don’t engage unless someone’s getting hurt, alright?” Rou and Meiko nodded, and we dispersed. Meiko wandered over towards the tents, and Rou went to the side of the river, as if looking for a spot to sit. I walked over through the trees, questions running through my head. Did Akito not trust us to get his brother back safely? If that even was his brother. Did he not care about other people's memories as long as his brother was safe? That didn't seem like him. Nothing made sense.

“Boss, I don't like this. He's one of them. He's probably spying.” It sounded like Nisei's voice. I darted behind a nearby tree. Slowly, I peaked beyond the trunk. In the distance, Nisei and Maneki were talking. I saw Maneki glance over at Fall. He was still transformed, which I took as a good thing. They couldn’t steal his memories as long as he was Fall. He leaned against a tree, arms crossed. A bright orange and indigo baboon ReMare kept poking and prodding at him. Fall swatted him away, looking extremely bored.

“Darling, he can spy all he likes. But he wants you alive. If he betrays us, we’ll kill you. Simple as that,” Maneki said.

“Right. Simple,” Nisei seemed to think about it for a moment, “That’s not simple!”

Fall apparently heard them. He stood up and lazily walked over, “Togo-chan is right. The second you lay a hand on him, I’ll turn on you.” He bobbed his head to the side, like he was smiling sarcastically. “I’ll wreck your shit. Got it?”

Maneki laughed. “Is that so? Togo, down.” She pointed down at her feet. The boy… I didn’t want to think of him as Togo… he knelt. Maneki put a foot on his shoulder. “Are you fast enough?” She asked. Fall did already have one of his glaives out and pointed at her. “Oho. There's more to you than it seems. However, did it occur to you that I am the only reason he is still alive at all?”

Fall held the glaive for a moment longer, then dispelled it, turning around in disgust. “I'm not going to let anyone hurt my little brother. Not again. Not even Year. There is no point in this posturing, Maneki.”

“Oh, I know. It’s amusing, isn’t it though, Togo?” she asked, letting the boy up. He stood up, glancing between the two.

“Yes,” he said, uncertainly. “Very amusing, boss.”

“Now that that nonsense is over, Goku?” Maneki said sweetly. The baboon hopped over.

“Yeah? What’s up?” Goku said.

“I’m going to let you supervise these two tonight. I want people to forget why they came here,” Maneki said, glancing at Fall and Nisei, “And I’d like for you to cause as much ruckus as you can. I’m sure…” She plucked the throwing star that was stuck to Nisei’s shirt off, “That your little friends will be here too. If you get a chance to steal their drivers, do not hesitate. Or just kill them. I don’t much care.”

“Why don’t you do it? Don’t memories make you stronger?” Fall asked. “I thought you things were like bottomless pits.”

“You things? Rude. Anyway, I’ve got more important things to do besides filling a hole, darling,” Maneki drawled. “Now. Go.”

“Yes, boss!” Nisei said, and turned to leave. Fall gestured to allow Goku to go after the boy first, and followed as if it was totally normal to stroll through the park in full magical armor.

Maneki turned towards me and smiled. I froze. “Come out, butterfly. I won’t hurt you.”

That was a lie, but I came out from behind the tree, Time Driver already in hand. “Give him back,” I growled.

“Which one?” She laughed. “They want to be here. Not everyone is fighting with you because they want to be a hero, little butterfly. I’d be careful with your little fox friend too. You know he wanted to take your place as Year?”

“He forgot who was Year,” I said, bristling. “I trust him.”

“Mmhm. But he knew it wasn't him. Don’t you think he should have tried harder to find you?” Maneki purred.

“He showed me what happened. I believe in him,” I said, trying to remain steadfast. It was hard. Even Rou had admitted it looked suspicious. What if he had done that to purposefully throw me off?

“And why does he have so many more memories than you of what has happened?” I was silent. Maneki grinned, watching my expression, “Because he runs and hides, so he can manipulate you. That’s what foxes do, little butterfly.”

This was a waste of time. I slammed the Time Driver against myself. “Henshin!”

I swiped the yellow Memoka across the board, and as sparkling stars swirled around me like a galaxy, I ran forward. My armor appeared. “CROSS THE STARS! THIS IS YOUR CHANCE! STAR!” I jumped into the air and aimed a kick at Maneki. She disappeared into ink and sunk into the ground before I made contact. I crashed into the ground, kneeling on one leg. Her laughter echoed throughout the forest.

“Dammit,” I said, standing up. Rou had not mentioned the extent of how aggravating Maneki was.

My phone pinged and I nearly jumped out of my skin. I checked it, feeling a little silly to be doing something like that in my armor.

It was from Rou. “Where are you? Fall and Summer are here. And a monkey.”

“I know. They just left here. Be right there,” I texted back.

“Before Winter does something dumb, please,” Rou sent back.

That didn’t sound good. Winter was strong, and Meiko had her sense of justice offended by someone she was fond of. Akito and Meiko were always jabbing at each other, but I knew it was seated in friendship. Meiko was too shy to do that with someone she didn’t actually like. I didn’t bother dropping my transformation. I jumped through the trees, getting back to the open area near the river, where shallow steps supported the river bank. A lot more people had arrived, and they were in a panic.

Goku was fast. He was running and jumping after fleeing people, like a particularly savage game of tag. Those he touched just sort of stood there, dazed.

Winter was fighting Fall. Thankfully neither of them had weapons out, but they were trading punches. Fall slid back at her last punch, and Summer screamed and darted in, his nunchaku spinning wildly. Winter wasn’t fast enough to deal with that. She summoned her sword and swatted him out of the way with the flat of it.

That pissed Fall off. He caught Summer. “Go help Goku,” Fall said coldly. Summer nodded and went to join the baboon. He faced Winter. “I won’t let you hurt him.”

“You're being an idiot!” Winter yelled. They clashed again. Fall struggled against her strength, getting pushed back, like a guy carrying an umbrella in a typhoon.

“Good, you’re here. I don’t know what to do,” Rou said, appearing beside me. He fidgeted with a piece of paper, creasing it again and again. “They’re fighting. They… I…”

He looked so painfully helpless, I forgot that I was upset about what Maneki had said about him. “Can you get Sharky and Arachne to distract Goku?” I asked. He nodded, and brought them out of his bag.

“Go, guys,” Rou said. Sharky spun around, obviously happy, before making a beeline to Goku. Sharky bit at Goku’s tail, and the baboon shrieked and spun around. Arachne stopped Goku from chasing after Sharky briefly, but her spell didn’t last long. They played tag team.

Winter had flung Fall back. He was on one knee, leaning on one of his glaives, staring up at her. I sighed and jumped down to where they were, landing between them, Prism Staff lit up and on guard.

“It’s about time you got here,” Winter said, walking forward to stand next to me, her stance aggressive.

“You’re fighting the wrong person, Winter. Sharky and Arachne can’t hold off that ReMare for long,” I said in a low, soft voice. It was true, especially now that Summer had joined him. It was all they could do to keep away from him, and Goku had gone back to hassling people who were milling around.

“Tch,” she said, but followed me when I jumped off to go attack the ReMare.

“Leave them alone!” I said, spinning the staff at Goku.

“Oh hey. I’ve got one of those too,” The monkey said, sounding surprised. A staff appeared in his hand. He spun it around, and one end extended and smacked Winter in the helmet. Winter shook her head, irritated, and sliced at him. Goku jumped up and away, jabbing his staff at both of us in turn.

I nodded at Winter, and jumped after him, landing briefly on his staff before lunging forward at him with an extended foot. It smashed into his head, and I got flickers of parents promising to get good spots for the fireworks as my foot squelched into his inky form. We crashed to the ground and I pointed the Prism Staff down at him.

“Not bad, kid,” Goku said, managing to sound more bored than impressed. “Don’t forget about that guy, though.”

“That guy” was Summer, and he had grabbed a fistful of my cape. He yanked me back and put the nunchaku around my neck. Goku was able to get up, and he saluted Summer before jumping off to go harass more people. Winter intercepted him. She was slower, but she was angry and that made her relentless.

Fall strolled up and leaned against his glaive. “How’s it going?”

“Fantastic, thanks,” I snapped back, leaning my head up to avoid the nunchaku. “Your brother is real friendly.”

Summer snarled in my ear and tightened the nunchaku against my throat.

“He is, isn’t he? You wanna hand over the Time Driver?” Fall asked.

“Not really,” I said, elbowing Summer in the chest. He staggered back, and I used the opportunity to slip under the nunchaku I hustled out of the way.

“Welp, it was worth a try,” he said with a shrug. Summer growled.

Winter ran up to join me, huffing and out of breath, “The baboon left.”

“Then that’s our cue. Come along, little brother,” Fall put Summer in headlock, and said “Abra Kadabra!” Fall’s sigil appeared in front of them, and he dragged Summer through with him.

They were gone.

 


	15. Cracks

We picked up the pieces. We let our transformations drop, and went around convincing people to evacuate. For those that hadn’t lost their memories of why they were here, we explained that the fireworks would be rescheduled. I made a call to Katsumi to make sure of that.

“Where’s Rou?” Meiko asked, once the crowd had cleared out. Her tone was cold and angry, and it made my heart ache. I reached out to her. She hesitated and took my hand.

“I think he’s down by the river. He was repairing Sharky,” I said.

“I’m worried about him,” she said. “He loves Akito.”

I wanted to say that we all do. I didn't. Maybe I was afraid she would deny it. “There’s a lot to be worried about right now,” I said instead, looking at her with concern.

“I’m fine,” she said shortly. I didn’t believe it for a second.

“Alright,” I said, and walked up to the water with her.

Rou was staring out over the river. “Where do we go now?” Rou asked, sensing our approach.

The question threw me for a loop. “What do you mean?” I asked. “We go home, regroup, and figure out what to do next. Like always.”

“I don't know if we have a home to go back to...” Rou said, “Aki made safe places. The café, the lab. His mother’s house. He even has the keys to your apartment.” Akito was home. He didn't say it, but I could hear it in his voice.

“I don’t think his betrayal goes that deep,” I surprised myself by saying it, but as soon as I did, I was certain it was true. “I don’t think he’s let go of his Fall transformation at all. He’s trying to protect his memories. He just wants to see if he can get his… his brother out of there.”

“And how long until he can’t stay Fall anymore?” Meiko demanded.

Rou put his head in his hands. “I don’t know. It’s a massive drain on his energy. I hope you’re right, Meiki. But… You’ve seen him. He quit being Autumn when he couldn’t remember his brother. If his brother is on the other side, I… I really think he’d go with him.”

“You’ve been a spy too,” I said a little more sharply than I meant to.

“And you gave Asuka the Time Driver!” Rou snapped back. He stood up and turned to face me. “What is that even supposed to mean? You wouldn’t be Year again if I hadn’t risked my life in the Under!”

“I know! I’m saying we need to trust him!” I said, my face burning at his words. “Akito still fought as Fall, even without his memories. He’s committed. Didn’t you see his origami glowing? The Bright Lady was telling us that he has her blessing.”

Meiko let go of my hand. “I’m sorry, Meiki. But I agree with Rou. We need to be careful. He was fighting me with full strength. And… We don’t know if that’s what the origami means. It could be the Bright Lady withdrawing her favor. It could be a ReMare messing with us. You don’t know.”

I stared at both of them, feeling very alone. I very much wanted Akito to show up and sling an arm over my shoulder and make a joke about nerds being a pain or say something flirty and ridiculous to break the tension.

But that wasn’t going to happen. And if it did, then… well. I was fairly certain Meiko would punch him in the face.

They seemed to take my silence for at least a temporary agreement. “Rou, if you want a place to stay, I think I’m going to go to my parents’ apartment. You’re welcome to join me.”

“Thanks,” Rou said, and glanced at me. “How about you?”

“I’ll think about it,” I said, guardedly. It felt wrong being that distant. I sighed and relented. “I want to look into some things. I’ll be around if you need me.”

“Stay safe, Meiki,” Meiko said softly. I wondered if she regretted our disagreement.

I nodded. “You too.” I said, and walked away to my bike.

I drove for a long time, both thinking and not thinking. The worries and fears of the whole situation had my thoughts swimming laps, but it felt like I was getting nowhere and those thoughts barely even left ripples in my mind.

It was a difficult situation.

I felt numb.

I ended up back at the shrine. I wasn’t sure what I would find there, or if I just wanted to go back to the last place we were together. I sat in front of the shrine for a long time. My feet went numb from sitting on them, and I shifted and moved, leaning against a stone lamp. I changed position occasionally, but eventually it grew dark.

I didn’t want to go. I drifted off to sleep.

I woke up to a sharp tug to my braid. I startled and scrambled to my feet, Time Driver and Memoka in hand and ready to transform.

Sharky was there. She had a post-it note affixed to her side. “Don’t do anything dumb,” it said, in Rou’s thin angular writing. Over it, he had stamped it with a pink sakura.

“Hi, Sharky,” I said, taking the note and slipping it into my pocket. “Are you my chaperone then?” I asked.

“YES!” Sharky shouted, and I blinked in surprise.

“You can talk again?” I said, a grin spreading across my face. It was the first piece of good news in a while. “That’s great, Sharky!”

“I AM GREAT, YES!” Sharky agreed, “WHY ARE YOU HERE? WHY NOT WITH YOUR FRIENDS?”

“It’s complicated,” I said, and explained about Akito.

“FIGHT HIM!” Sharky said, in what I’m sure she thought was a sagely tone, but was just as loud as it usually was.

“I don’t think that’s a good way to deal with this,” I said, amused. “I thought you were supposed to be my chaperone?”

“THAT IS HOW WE BECAME FRIENDS!” Sharky reminded me.

I laughed. “You’re right, but humans don’t usually do that,” I said.

“YES. BUT. CAT IS DANGEROUS,” Sharky said, swimming back and forth through the air. “SHE IS BAD DOGGY’S BOSS. SHE WANTS TO GET THE DARK ONE’S ATTENTION. WANTS TO WAKE HIM UP. VERY VERY DANGEROUS.”

“The Dark One?” I asked. “Is that like the Bright Lady?”

“NO! NOT LIKE!” Sharky objected, swimming away from me like I was a predator and had jumped out of the brush with fangs bared. “VERY NOT LIKE!”

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry. Can you tell me?” I asked, speaking calmly to try and get her to relax.

Sharky thrashed irritably, and then swam back to me. “DARK ONE DOESN’T EAT MEMORIES TO GET STRONG. HE DESTROYS THEM. FOR FUN.” Sharky said, and shuddered, making a rustling paper sound. “HE AND THE BRIGHT LADY ARE ALWAYS FIGHTING. HE MAKES BLOTS TO HURT THE SPIRITS AND TURN THEM AGAINST HER.”

“You seem to know a lot about it,” I said, “Thank you.”

“BAD CAT AND DOGGY DID NOT THINK SHARKY WOULD UNDERSTAND,” Sharky said, sounding incredibly smug.

“Do you know what she is planning, then?” I asked.

“SHE WANTS TO EAT THE HIGH REMARES,” Sharky said. “SO SHE CAN BE SUPER STRONG. SHE GOT THE IDEA FROM WHEN BAD DOGGY ATE ROU'S MEMORIES.”

That was alarming. “I need to get Akito out of there,” I said, laying my head down on the ground. I could see the stars. They were so bright and beautiful.

A cloud moved in, slowly devouring their fragile light.

“YES. FIGHT HIM,” Sharky said again.

“No!” I snapped, and covered my eyes. Sharky nipped at my vest, but eventually left me alone. I fell asleep there.

I woke up to a foot nudging my side. “Girl. This is a shrine. What are you doing on the ground?” a strange deep voice asked. My eyes opened slowly and I saw a priest in a white yukata and teal hakama over it. He held a straw broom, which he seemed to be considering sweeping me up with. He was older, and his face was incredibly homely.

“I’m so sorry,” I said, and stood up abruptly and bowed in deep apology. “I needed guidance.”

He laughed. It was a hearty one, which put me at ease. “I had heard the phrase ‘to sleep on a problem’ but I have never had the honor of meeting someone who took it literally. Come. Eat some breakfast.” He started walking over to a small gift shop where people could buy protection charms and fortunes. I followed. Needless to say, I was hungry. “So. You need guidance,” he said, as he cut up a Japanese pear. I thought it must be the first harvest. It was early for pears. He put it on a plate alongside a bowl of rice and a whole miso cucumber. He served it with a cup of tea. He put out an identical plate for himself.

I couldn’t help myself. I poured out what had happened in between bites of crisp cool pears and cucumber. The breakfast was light and fresh. It felt like the gloom that had been weighing on me was washed away with cool sweet water.

The priest listened. Finally my words ran out, and I apologized, “I’m sorry. I just don’t really have anyone to vent to right now.”

“It’s alright. I’m happy to listen,” he said, leaning back in his chair. “I can’t give you an answer, I’m afraid.”

“I don’t think there is one,” I said, sighing. “It was too much to hope that there was.”

“Untrue,” he said, shaking his head. “Think. What does the… Cat… want? What does she gain by having humans who can destroy ReMares under her power? Who do you think she might be targeting?”

“Other ReMares?” I said, “But what good would that be?”

“Power,” the priest said. “And if she get it, who will she turn it against?”

“The ReMares are always hungry… She’d go after humans,” I said, “And… we probably wouldn’t be able to stop her.”

“So. What should you do?” he asked. When I didn’t answer, he frowned, “I do not think it is good for humans to be in her power, do you not?”

“I don’t want to fight Akito!” My voice cracked with feeling.

“You need to get them out of her power,” he said, “or others will experience pain.”

I swallowed, willing myself not to cry. “No. You’re right. Thank you.”

I drove back down the mountain, planning to show up on Meiko’s parents’ door stop and apologize to Meiko and Rou. If not for my opinion, then for snapping at them. Especially at Rou. Instead, I found a very confused downtown area. The roads were gridlocked, but with my bike I was able to zip through the cracks between cars. In the crossing, people were milling about in the center of the road, despite the cars honking irritably at them.

I got off my bike and looked around. There had to be a ReMare around. I followed the path of confused people down the arcade. At the end was a small Buddhist temple. It seemed like a sign, having just come from a religious spot. I heard some screaming and quickly got my Time Driver and Memoka in hand. A gaggle of small kids ran by with yellow bucket hats. Goku followed after, his staff resting against his shoulder.

“Oh hey, kid. What’s up?” he asked when he noticed me.

I put the driver to my waist and shouted “Henshin!” before swiping it with the white Memoka.

“It’s your YEAR! Go! Go! Go!” the belt chimed.

“Jeeze, I was just saying hi. Way to over react, kid.” Goku tisked, and spun to face me. “Let’s end this here!” he proclaimed dramatically. He charged at me, staff aiming towards my face. I moved to block, but the staff dipped dramatically low, and planted into the ground in front of me. Goku vaulted into the air, swinging to the roof of a building. “Just kidding!”

“Damn it!” I grabbed my yellow Memoka, about to switch to Star so that I could jump after him, when a glowing bronze glaive embedded into the ground in front of me.

Fall.

He was standing on a mailbox like that made him cool. “Sorry, Year. Can’t let you follow him.”

“Where’s your… Where’s Summer?” I demanded.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” Fall said, hopping down from the mailbox. “I could say the same about Meiko-chan and Jiro, but I’m thinking you’re not going to answer.”

“I don’t think they’d appreciate being called that by you right now,” I said carefully.

“You’re probably right. So, shall we?” He didn’t wait for my response. He came at me. The Prism Blade wasn’t ready yet, and he still had another glaive. I panicked, and grabbed his second glaive to defend myself. I blocked his attack with it. “Oh no, with my own glaive! Shocking!” He did not sound shocked.

“You dropped it,” I said blandly.

“I did!” he said cheerfully, knocking it aside and slashing at me. I spun out of the way. The Time Driver chimed.

“I don’t want to fight you, Fall,” I said, drawing the Prism Blade.

“I do though, so either toughen up or hand over the Year Driver,” Fall said.

“Why?” I cried, slashing at him with the Prism Blade. It clashed with the glaive and sparked.

He was quiet for a long moment, trading blows with me, forcing me to back down an alley. “Togo-chan was never part of the Mei Brigade. He didn’t chose to fight in this battle,” he said, and threw his glaive at me. I dove out of the way, but it caught my cape and pinned me to the wall. I struggled, but the fabric wouldn’t give. “He tried to fight Shika because he saw me go down.” Fall watched me struggle.

“I think Maneki wants to eat the High ReMares. She’ll use that power to destroy everything,” I said, “Please don’t help her… We could help him together, Aki.” I watched him stroll closer to me, feeling uncomfortably of a butterfly pinned in a collection. “We could beat her.”

“I don’t think we can, Year,” Fall said, shaking his head. “Not yet.”

“AGGGHHHAAAAA!” A distant roar echoed through the streets. Fall placed a gloved hand on the top of my helmet and rubbed it as if ruffling my hair.

“Looks like that’s my cue. We’ll play later, Year,” Fall said, “Abra Kadabra!” He said, and disappeared through his sigil again.

I struggled against the glaive, “You could have got rid of this at least!” I shouted after him, annoyed. I swore and just wiped my Time Driver clear.

“Erase! Bye Bye!” It said as it powered down. My armor and cape disappeared, and I was free.

“Now, where did he run off to,” I muttered. I jogged out of the alley and looked both directions. “Which way?” I asked myself. “Come on, Summer, yell again…”

He didn’t oblige. Of course. I rolled my shoulder. I thought it might have been to the east. What was even in that direction? Momiji Café. It was a few blocks away. It seemed a good of a guess as any. I hurried in that direction, dodging dazed pedestrians. It felt a bit like being a zombie apocalypse, except the zombies were just confused and in the way. I wondered if Nisei or Togo or whoever was technically a zombie. If he was a ReMare possessing a dead body, would that be a zombie? Or some other monster?

I shook my head. That was terrible. I didn’t like that I had even thought about it.

The scene at Momiji Café was a mess. Goku had grabbed a young mother by the shoulder and had noticed me. He waved lazily. “Howdy. The Cicada and Ox Beetle are inside.”

I scowled and said “Henshin!” and swiped the pink Memoka across the Time Driver. A flurry of pink light swirled around me and I ran at him as the Driver chimed the Sakura theme. I flung a spray of throwing stars at Goku. He bounced out of the way, but some of them struck their target.

“Hey now! That hurt!” Goku objected. He sounded more surprised than hurt.

“Enough play time, let’s do this!” I shouted. I was tired of him yanking us around. I flung a few more throwing stars at him, and he dodged out of the way. I anticipated it this time, and intercepted him with a punch to the face. He staggered back, holding his gooey face. I kicked at his leg, and he staggered. He swung his staff wildly at me.

“EY! BOYS!” he shouted. I glanced back at the café and both Summer and Fall appeared.

“This is bad,” I muttered to myself. My chances were good against one of them, but all three would be impossible.

Something was odd though. Summer seemed transfixed by the injured baboon. He growled.

“Ahaha, niiiice Cicada?” the monkey laughed nervously, hand out like trying to tame a wild dog.

Winter appeared behind Goku. Her belt announced, “White out,” in a low but rough voice that sounded like a metal singer with laryngitis. She spun and kicked him in the head, pale sparkles drifting behind her foot like snow.

Goku had a moment of surprise cross his face, before he dissolved into a messy puddle of ink and an orange globe of light.

“Thanks, Winter!” I said, giving her a thumbs up before reaching for the globe.

Summer shrieked something unholy and tackled me away from the light. He punched me in the helmet several times before Winter could drag him off me. He struggled in her arms, smashing his head into hers, and throwing himself forward.

“Get off of him!” Fall said, rushing forward to get him free of Winter’s grip.

I stood up slowly, my head ringing. I reached for the globe again. If Summer got it, he’d just eat Goku. Rou didn’t think it would destroy the spirit, but it would definitely make Summer stronger.

Summer squirmed free of Winter, and Fall locked Winter into battle. Summer reached for the globe at the same time I did.

Fall shoved Winter back, and just as Summer and I both had our finger tips on the globe, Fall did a dramatic high kick, flinging the globe into the air and far away from us both. “Pull back, Summer. We couldn’t get what we came here for. Jiro cleaned up for once.” Fall shrugged. “Abra Kadabra!” he said, before disappearing with a struggling Summer into his sigil.

Winter ran at the sigil, but it disappeared before she got to it. She stomped her foot and dropped her transformation. “That bastard!” she said.

“Are you okay?” I asked, feeling dizzy as the Sakura transformation faded away.

“Who cares? How are you?” she demanded, still angry at losing Akito.

“I do,” I reminded her, “A little tired. Disappointed that we lost Goku’s light,” I said.

“I got it, actually,” Rou said, strolling up with it, looking like he was deep in thought.

“Oh. Good,” I said.

“Come on, let’s go. You look like you slept outdoors,” Meiko said, plucking a leaf from my braid.

“I did,” I said, giving her a cheeky grin, knowing it would exasperate her. She rolled her eyes.

“I told you one of us should have went, but you wanted to send Sharky.” Meiko shot Rou a look.

“It’s worked before,” Rou said, shrugging.

“Sharky?” I said, frowning. “I didn’t see Sharky. Where is she?” A rising note of fear touched my words. I put my driver back in my vest pocket, and noticed a crumpled piece of paper.

“You didn’t?” Rou asked, sounding concerned. “We sent her to you. Meiko was worried about you, and I didn't want you to be alone.”

I unfolded the paper, and glanced at it. “Don't do anything dumb? This is your handwriting…” I said, and passed it to him.

He glanced at it and crumpled it in his hand. “Dammit What kind of idiot sleeps where a ReMare can get her?” Rou demanded.

“Whatever! I don’t think I forgot anything but Sharky visiting. The more important thing is that she might be in danger! Can you find her?” I asked, grabbing him by the shoulders. It ended his lecture before he really got into it. He nodded.

“Yeah, hang on,” Rou said, putting away Goku’s light. I let go. He folded up a much smaller shark origami and handed it to me. “Put it on the Pair Driver. I need to go back and see if I can get the orange Memoka up quickly. If you find her and she’s injured, please call me.”

“Right,” I said. “Meiko, are you coming with me?”

She eyed me. “You’re not going to rest, so yes.”

“Thanks. I appreciate it,” I said. “Come on, the bike’s back here.” On the way back to where I had parked, there was still chaos, but now it was loud and anxious instead of listless. People were abuzz about the ReMare. Most of them had never seen one. Or at least, they didn’t remember. I felt guilty about just leaving them, but a squad of police officers had stepped up and started directing people. They could handle it.

Meiko was silent as we walked, and on the bike, although she held onto me tightly as I followed the signal on the Pair Driver’s map. It took us to a warehouse, and I felt fear build up in me as we went. It didn’t seem like a place that Sharky would normally hang out, and I definitely correlated warehouses with fighting Asuka.

I parked outside the warehouse. “I don’t like this,” I said.

“Me either,” Meiko said quietly. “Any of it.”

“I know… I’m sorry I argued with you,” I said. “And with Rou. I should have told him…”

Meiko took a moment to remove her helmet. “I won’t lie. I’m furious at Akito. He could have trusted us to help. But I’d like for you to be right. Rou hopes so, too.”

“I hope I am too. I’m scared I might really have to fight him though,” I said.

“I know. We’ll figure out something. But… for now… Let’s go get Sharky,” Meiko said. I nodded and she followed me into the warehouse. We were quiet and on guard.

“What the heck are you kids doin’ here?” A rough voice said out of nowhere, and I nearly jumped out of my skin.

“Who’s there?” I demanded, one hand on my Time Driver. Meiko shrunk back behind me. It seemed odd after she had been so aggressive towards Akito, but I suppose this time we were technically breaking and entering, so it was harder for her to be confident.

A middle aged bald guy in paint stained overalls stormed over. “This is private property! I ought to be askin’ you that!” He had his hand on his hips.

“We’re reporters, sir,” I said, getting out my wallet to show him my business card. “I’m Kimura Mei, at your service. This is my associate Koda Mei. We had an anonymous tip of some suspicious activity.”

“What suspicious activity?” He said, suddenly defensive.

“Oh, you know. Kids disappearing,” I shrugged. “It’s probably just a rumor, but it doesn’t hurt to poke about, you know?”

“Nothin’ like that here. Now get out,” he snapped.

“Ah, I see. Koda-san, make sure to note he’s refusing to let us investigate,” I told her.

“Won’t that look like he’s trying to hide something suspicious?” Meiko asked innocently. “That could really cause problems for the business.”

His face turned some interesting colors in rage and finally defeat, “Do what you want!” He tromped off a short distance to work on loading up a truck. He kept a suspicious watch on us.

“Well. Let’s look around,” I said, trying to ignore his gaze.

As we searched, the man always seemed to find a job to do that put him within glaring distance. It was starting to get annoying. “Where is she?” I said quietly to Meiko.

She shrugged. “I don’t know, but the tracer said…“ She stopped mid sentence.

“What?” I followed her gaze. Tucked between two boxes was a crumpled pile of blue paper. “No…”I said, and knelt to pick it up. I smoothed it out, and noticed small katakana written along the white side of the paper, spelling out her name. “She…”

“She’s safe, for now,” A deep voice said, and I spun around. The cranky man was walking over, and slowly is wrinkled brown skin darkened and became shiny and wet looking. Streaks of colorful bright light burst through the ink. His body was mostly humanoid, but his head was like a massive bull’s.

I recognized him. “Minotaur!” I shouted, fumbling for my Driver.

“Calm down,” He commanded. “I wish to speak.” I do not think it had the effect that he was hoping for because Meiko transformed and stepped in front of me. He snorted in annoyance and revealed a glowing blue ball.

“Sharky!” I said, putting the Time Driver around my waist.

“Yes. It is that shark spirit. You want her back, no?” Minotaur asked.

“Yes! Give her back!” I demanded.

“Then tell that girl to stand down. I want to make a deal,” Minotaur said.

I stepped forward and put my hand on Winter's armored shoulder. She glanced back at me and I met her helmet’s bored looking eyes. She shook her head. I sighed, “I won’t transform. She stays. Allow us that much protection.”

Minotaur was silent for a moment, and then nodded. “Fine.”

“What is your deal?” I asked.

“I need you to destroy Maneki. In return, I will give the shark back,” he said.

I frowned, “I don’t understand why you need to blackmail us in order to do that. She’s not exactly in our good favor… It’s like saying, here! Eat this delicious cheesecake or I’ll kill your friend!”

“Food, again…” Winter muttered.

“She has your friend and his brother hostage. You are reluctant to fight Fall, are you not?” He said, crossing his arms.

I didn’t respond. Things were starting to add up, and I wasn't liking the sum. They had sent Sharky up to me on the mountain. I had poured out my troubles to a priest. I had forgotten she had come to me. He had nudged me with his foot. Sharky was here. With Minotaur. “You were the priest on the mountain!” I accused. I felt betrayed. He had been kind to me.

“Yes,” he said simply. “Will you do it?”

I glanced at Winter again. She shrugged and didn’t offer any suggestions, “Why don’t you do it yourself?” I asked. “She’s not a High ReMare.”

“It is politics. Do not worry about it.”

“I am worried about it. Tell me,” I demanded, “Or I’ll go to her and see if she wants a couple more humans to gather spirits for her to eat.”

“You wouldn’t,” he said simply.

“Oh? I am already considering doing a deal with an enemy who has my friend ransom. What makes you think it would be any different to help another enemy who has a friend ransom?” I said, gesturing dramatically.

“One does not intend on giving your friends back,” he said. I glared at him, unyielding. “Fine. Maneki is High ReMare Tigra’s pet. She is already angry that Asuka cost her both Anubis and Sharky. Angry at me, because Asuka was in alliance with me. I do not wish to cause war with her. If you destroy Maneki, she will not have cause to be angry with me.”

“She’ll be angry with us instead,” I said.

“We are all angry with you. That will not change,” he said. “You are our enemy.”

“Then why didn’t you destroy me on the mountain?” I demanded, “You just took my memories of Sharky visiting, didn’t you?”

“That is correct. I need you to do this thing,” Minotaur said, nodding gravely. “And my power is not as strong in that place.”

That seemed like an important piece of information. “Fine. I will do it. But you need to give Sharky back now,” I said.

He paused. “If you wish.” He made a low bellowing sound and a blot appeared. Before I could stop him, he shoved Sharky’s globe of light into it. Blue markings appeared on the blot, and it took on a shark-like appearance.

“No!” I shouted.

“If you remove her from the blot before Maneki is destroyed, I will kill you. Good bye,” Minotaur said, before splashing into the ground and disappearing into the Under.

Winter dropped her transformation, becoming Meiko again. “Sharky, are you okay?” She asked tentatively.

“SHARKY HAS BODY AGAIN!” she bellowed, and jumped from foot to foot. She seemed happy. And then she stopped and stood still. “SHARKY IS HUNGRY AGAIN!” she lamented.

“I know… I’m sorry, Sharky. Can you be strong until we can defeat Maneki?” I said.

“YES. SHARKY IS SO STRONG!” Sharky puffed out her chest, and then faltered again, “BUT… NOT SO STRONG AS I WAS BEFORE.”

“You’re not as colorful,” I said. “I… We’ll do our best to get you back into a paper body.”

“SHARKY WOULD LIKE THAT. BUT…” Sharky paused, “SHARKY WOULD ALSO LIKE TO PLAY WITH YEAR AGAIN.”

I smiled tiredly. I didn’t like the idea of fighting another friend, but at least with Sharky it had always been that way. I knew where she stood. “I think I could make that happen. We’ll have to fight to get you out of the blot, I think.”

“GOOD!” Sharky nodded. She looked at Meiko, “I AM SORRY I ATE YOUR MEMORIES BEFORE! WE CAN PLAY TOO, OKAY?”

“It’s alright, Sharky. I’d already forgiven you,” Meiko said quietly.

“YAY!” Sharky cheered.

“This is going to be interesting to explain to Rou.” I sighed.

“Especially since we’re avoiding going home. My parents are being weird enough about Rou staying with us…” Meiko glanced sidelong at Sharky, and I could just imagine bringing home an excitable Shark monster home to unsettled parents. Meiko's parents would likely faint, although I could imagine Akito's mother trying to serve Sharky tea.

The thought was equal parts ridiculous and painful. I dragged my face over my hand to banish it.

“SHARKY CAN GO WHEREVER. EVEN UNDER. DON’T WORRY ABOUT ME,” Sharky said, surprising me with her astuteness.

“I would worry about you going into the Under. What if Tigra realizes you’re a ReMare again and tries to force you to fight for her again?” I asked.

“I DO NOT KNOW ABOUT TIGRA MUCH. I WAS WITH THE BAD DOG AND SOMETIMES WITH THE CAT.” Sharky shrugged.

I frowned. “You know what? I’m just going back to my apartment. You can come with me.”

“What about Akito?” Meiko asked.

“I’m tired of this already,” I said, “I want to trust him, so I’m going to do it. If he shows up asking for a fight, then I’ll fight him. That’s all there is to it.”

“SHARKY WILL TOO! SHARKY WANTS TO PLAY WITH FALL!” Sharky said cheerfully.

“Oh yes, Sharky. We'll play,” I said, grinning at her, a vague idea forming in my head. “We just need to change the rules a bit.”

“YES!” Sharky cheered, pumping an arm into the air.

“What are you planning?” Meiko asked reluctantly. I gave her a Cheshire's grin too. “Hey!” She punched me in the shoulder. “Tell me!”

I laughed, “Let’s get Rou. I’ll tell you then.”

 


	16. Declaration of War

It felt very odd to have a ReMare in my house. Sharky seemed stark black compared to my magpie’s nest, even with her blue streaks. Meiko sat at my kitchen table, sending me mildly impatient looks every few minutes as I puttered about the kitchen, making something to eat. I had been spoiled by Akito’s cooking, but I could still put together a decent meal. And I was hungry.

Sharky sniffed at the smells, keeping her hands and arms very carefully to herself. “Do you want to try some human food?” I asked her.

“I TRIED BEFORE. BAD DOG YELLED AT ME. IT WAS NOT FUN,” Sharky said, shaking her head wildly.

“Anubis isn’t here to yell at you,” I reminded her, plating up some rice fried with ketchup and chicken. I blanketed it with a thin layer of eggs.

“THAT IS ONE THING BAD DOG WAS RIGHT ABOUT. I GOT SICK,” Sharky pouted.

“Then, want to decorate this omurice with ketchup?” I asked, putting the squeeze bottle on the counter.

“YES!” Sharky said, bounding over to the counter. I stepped away quickly, getting out of her way. She slowly, evenly, squeezed the ketchup bottle over the eggs, moving carefully to create designs. I stared in fascination. Her words and actions were usually such a wrecking ball of energy. It was odd to watch her concentrate.

There was a knock at the door, and Rou entered right after without waiting for us to let him in. He stopped abruptly when he saw Sharky at the counter. His face went pale. “What. Did. You. Do?” he hissed.

I gave Sharky a worried glance. I didn't want to upset her. She was still concentrating on the omurice. “It was a trap,” I said, and explained what had happened.

Rou sat down, frowning. “I don't like this. There's got to me more to his request.”

“I don’t know, but I have a plan,” I said, grinning.

“She has a plan,” Meiko echoed, sounding like she assumed the plan was for all of us to dress in drag and do a vaudeville tap dance. It was tempting.

“What is it?” Rou sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“Sharky, are you listening?” I asked. She was integral to my little plot, and I wanted to make sure she understood what I was hoping she would do.

“YES! IS THE PLAN TO FIGHT FALL?” Sharky asked, looking up from the omurice.

“Yes. I want you to fight Fall. Just playing, alright? I don’t want either of you to get seriously hurt,” I said, waggling a finger at her.

“I CAN PLAY?! YAY!” Sharky wiggled happily.

“And…?” Rou said dubiously.

I outlined my plan. It was a little complicated, and it depended on Akito’s cooperation, and on us being able to subdue Summer and take him someplace safe without angering Akito.

“I don’t know,” Meiko said dubiously, and took a sip of tea.

Rou had his arms crossed as he listened. Sharky placed a plate of omurice in front of each of us. She had painted pictures with the ketchup. She had Year’s mask on mine, and flowers on Meiko’s. Rou’s had a cute little fox on it. Rou looked at it for a long moment. He nodded, slowly. “It might work. It's better than anything else we've got right now. And if you can get Summer’s belt off him then you’ve got a better chance of keeping him out of danger.”

“Thanks. Can you make another web for us in case we can’t?” I asked. Rou nodded.

“I don’t see how you can trust Akito enough to go through with this,” Meiko said to Rou.

Rou sighed. “I don’t know,” he said, and pulled an orange Memoka out of his pocket. “He did kick Goku right to me.” He handed the Memoka to me, “Here’s Obon.”

“That could have been an accident,” Meiko said.

“I don’t think it was. He could have just grabbed it himself, or kicked it into Summer’s hands,” Rou said.

“I hadn’t thought about that,” I said. It made me feel better about the plan already. “The worst that can happen is he doesn’t go along with it and we’ve got to go back to how we’ve been fighting him all along.”

“SHARKY IS STRONG! HE WILL HAVE TO GO ALONG WITH IT!” Sharky announced.

“See, Sharky says it’ll be okay,” I said, leaning against Meiko’s shoulder like a pleading puppy. “Fine.”Meiko shook her head and took a bite of her dinner. “I’ll go along with it.”

“Thank yoooou,” I said, kissing her cheek before digging into my own meal.

“I don’t know what to do with you,” she said, sounding exasperated but fond.

“Pshhhh, you love me,” I said between bites.

Rou frowned and dug into his meal, pointedly ignoring our sappiness.

They all ended up staying the night at my apartment. It was a tight fit, but it was doable. Meiki and Rou slept on futons on my bedroom floor. There ended up being no bare floor once both sleeping places had been laid out, but it worked. Sharky took up the kitchen. She wanted to stand guard, and she didn’t trust herself to not accidentally steal our memories by brushing up against one of us by mistake.

In the morning, we staked out the Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital, broadcasting the Mei Brigade show from there live. “We actually found some records of the boy this place is named after,” I said over the air. Strictly speaking, it was a lie. But it was one intended as a message. “He was a patient in one of the wards, while the doctors worked hard to bring his memories back. Even when he couldn’t remember who his friends were, they tried their best to protect him. They fought like sharks to keep him safe!”

Sharky pointed at her self and raised a hand like an eager student, “OH! OH! LIKE ME!”

“Shh,” Rou said, “They're on the air.”

“SORRY,” Sharky shouted, and quieted.

“But the ReMares didn’t care who they destroyed. Families. Brothers. Doctors. We won’t let them destroy any more lives. That is why we are restoring Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital. To be a symbol of this city’s strength, and love,” Meiko said. Despite her reservations, her voice was serious and strong. My dear Winter might be cool on the outside, but she was blazing with passion on the inside.

“I hope you will all stand by us. And now, I’ll take you to a music break!” I said, and Meiko switched our soundboard over to some inspiring older pop songs.

Rou was walking back to us. He looked tired and hot in his leather jacket. “I parked the station's van on the other side of the building. It’s all set up.”

“Thanks,” I glanced over at Sharky. She was sitting crouched over on the curb, head in her hands. She looked like she was focusing hard. “I hope he gets here soon.”

“She must be hungry…” Rou said, and glanced at me, “which is exactly why I told you to defeat her in the first place, you know. It’s got to be extremely hard for her to not give in to her instincts and try to take our memories.”

“I know,” I said, “I think she’ll be okay, though. She’s strong.”

“I don’t know if it’s fair to her though,” Meiko said, quietly.

“She’s part of the Mei Brigade too. She can decide to fight if she wants to. And the sooner we solve things, the sooner she can go back to her origami form,” I said.

“Minotaur is going to fight us regardless of whether or not we wait until after we fight Maneki to restore her,” Meiko said dryly.

“I know. But I’d rather fight him when we’ve got Akito to back us up. It took everything the three of us could throw at Asuka to defeat her, and I get the impression that the others are just going to be stronger,” I said.

Rou nodded in agreement. In all actuality, I was the most worried about Rou in this situation. I suspected that after Fall and Summer had raided his lab, they might go after him instead as a more direct source of information. That I depended on that, using Rou as bait even, was one of the many points that could go very wrong in my plan. The plan also hinged on Akito cooperating, and Maneki showing up. A lot of things could go wrong.

“The show’s going back on. Rou, can you call in your request song?” Meiko said, as she fiddled with the soundboard.

“Right,” Rou said, getting out his cellphone and walking a few feet away.

She patched in our call, “We have a caller, Meiji Rou-san on the air. Welcome to F.M. 98.5 Mei Brigade!”

“Hi, um. I have a song request. Someone I care about a lot is struggling right now, and I want to show my support,” Rou said. He sounded more nervous than I had ever heard him sound, which I frankly thought was adorable.

“Alright. Could you tell us your friend’s name?” I asked.

“His name is Akkun. He’s… He’s having trouble with his brother, and it makes it hard to hang out with him as much as I’d like to. So… Yeah,” Rou said, floundering at the end. “I’d help him if I could.”

“That’s rough. I’m sure he appreciates that your thoughts are with him,” Meiko’s cheerful voice somehow made that into a threat. Like if Akito dared do anything besides appreciate Rou’s feelings, he’d have hell to pay. I was fairly certain the threat was serious.

“I hope so. Anyway. I want to listen to Autumn Memories, by Nadesuko-chan,” Rou said.

“We can do that for you! Have a good day, this is Autumn Memories, by Nadesuko-chan,” I said, cheerfully, and Meiko pulled it up and played it over the air.

“Do you think he’ll show up?” Rou said, walking back over to us. The music played over our speakers. It was a good song for Akito. It was fun and flirty, but it had a serious sad side too.

“He’s already here,” Meiko pointed out. And he was. Fall and Summer were walking out of the forest.

Sharky perked up. “IS IT TIME TO PLAY NOW?” she shouted, standing up. I could see Fall hesitate and nearly miss a step as he noticed our big lumbering ReMare.

“What the heck is this, Meiki?” Fall asked, gesturing at Sharky.

“Ah well. She had a run in with a bull,” I said, “As for the rest, it’s a trap!”

“A bull…” he faltered, “I see. A trap then. And I suppose we just sprung it?”

“Not at all!” I said cheerfully. “Rou, would you take the super secret plans back to the van, where it’s safe?”

“Whatever,” he said, sounding surly. I’m sure it wasn’t entirely feigned, but he was doing one of the more dangerous parts of the plan. He strolled off, resting a leather suitcase on his shoulder.

“RAGH!” Summer growled and sprang after him. Winter transformed and intercepted him, blocking him with her sword. He tried to get around her, and she casually gave ground before she blocked him again. She wasn't going all out, and she seemed as bored as her helmet looked.

“Where are you leading him?” Fall demanded, suddenly more alarmed.

“Safely to Arachne,” I said calmly, “Now, Sharky wants to play with you. Have fun!”

“Fun, huh…And if I don’t?” He stared out after where Summer was slowly pushing Winter back.

“Then play time is over and it’s my turn,” I said as firmly as I could. “I want the Mei Brigade back, Akito. All of it.”

He was quiet for a moment longer. Finally he looked up. “Heh.” He posed so his short shoulder cloak spread dramatically, “Alright then, Sharky! I won’t go easy on you.”

“YES! SHARKY IS STRONG!” Sharky charged forward and tackled him

The sheer surprise of such a straightforward attack sent Fall sprawling on the ground. He grappled Sharky, rolling her off of him, and jumped back to his feet. “I can see that!” he said, amused. “It won’t happen again.”

Sharky seemed to take that as a personal challenge, because she ran at him again. This time he stepped aside, although it seemed she had thought of that too, because she spun low to the ground, this time kicking his feet out from under him. “SHARKY WILL GET BORED IF THIS IS THE BEST YOU DO, FALL.” She glanced at me, “IF I GET BORED, CAN I EAT HIM?”

“I’d rather you didn’t,” I said mildly, “But I suppose that’s an option. At least try a little, Fall.”

“I am!” He grumbled, standing up again. This time he didn’t wait for Sharky to attack. He punched her on the nose. The inky part of her squelched grossly. She shouted wordlessly and punched him back. He threw up an arm to guard his face, and aimed another punch to her abdomen.

“THAT IS BETTER!” Sharky said, grabbing his fist and pulling him off balance.

He caught himself by summoning one of his glaives. “Thanks, I guess,” he said and summoned the second one, spinning with it stretched out, using the first glaive to balance himself. Sharky jumped back away from the glowing blade. She had memories of being cut by my Prism Weapons and she wasn’t keen on facing their searing light again.

I heard some angry screeching from the other side of the building. Fall looked up in alarm, and Sharky took the opportunity to punch him in the head. My phone rang, and I answered it. “Yeah?” I said.

“I hope you didn’t have anything important in your van,” Rou said dryly. “He’s throwing a temper tantrum.”

“Did Winter get his Driver?” I asked.

“No,” Rou said. “We’re waiting for him to tire out.”

“Alright. Next step, then.” I hung up on him. Fall was still distracted, and Sharky was pummeling him for it. “Sharky, wait just a second.” She threw one last punch, but pulled it short, making Fall flinch. Sharky grinned and stepped away. “We have you brother. You’re outnumbered.”

“So I should come quietly?” Fall said, like that there was zero chance of that happening.

“No.” I smiled, “You do what you need to do. But for Sharky’s sake, we need to fight Maneki. Can you contact her?”

“Ah, I see. We’re the bait,” Fall said, rubbing his shoulder. “I can, I suppose.” He pulled out a small flip phone. “She gave it to me,” he explained. I nodded, knowing that he had a smart phone too. “Oy, boss. They caught Togo. And they’ve got a ReMare on their side somehow. I don’t know, maybe they realized they were outnumbered when you send ReMares with us? They’re not dumb, you know.” He was quiet for a moment, “No, I don’t think I can take all four of them by myself. I am also not dumb.” He rolled his eyes, covering the bottom of the phone. It still seemed silly to me to see someone in armor do something normal like make a phone call. He hung up. “She’ll be here soon. So, what’s stopping me from running after my brother as soon as she gets here?” he asked, hands behind his head, as if totally relaxed.

“You’re getting tired. I wonder how long you’ve been transformed…” I said, deflecting his question.

“Winter is strong, but I’m still faster than her. And I doubt Summer wants to be held,” Fall said.

“And what will you do? Do you really trust him more with the ReMares than with us?” I asked, throwing the words at him like weapons. “I don’t know what game you’re playing with them, but-“

“PLAY?” Sharky perked up.

“Sharky, not yet. Could you actually go help Winter? Protect them, okay? We’ll play later,” I said. Sharky nodded and tromped off.

“Do you think you can just swoop in and win it?” Fall asked, amused. “By the looks of it, you’re cheating a bit yourself.” He tipped his chin in the direction of Sharky’s retreating back.

“Sharky isn’t our enemy,” I said, “And neither are you, and,” I hesitated. It was hard to say the next part, because I wasn’t sure I was ready to admit it might be true. I forced myself to say it anyway. “And neither is Togo.”

Fall noticed my hesitation, and tilted his head inquisitively.

“I don't know if he's a ReMare pretending to be human, or possessing your brother, or what. But I want to help him. I want to help you,” I said firmly. Before Fall could say anything more, my phone rang again.

“Yeah?” I answered it.

“Sharky is over here now. But... We have a problem,” Rou said.

“What problem?” I demanded, feeling anxious.

“She's attacking Summer,” Rou said. I could hear a lot of shouting in the background.

“Shit. I’ll be right there,” I said, and hung up.

Fall was already running.

I followed after him, transforming into Golden as I went.

“Glitter Golden! Go!” My belt announced.

The scene was chaotic. Winter had managed to put herself between Summer and Sharky, her massive sword outstretched to the side as a barrier. Sharky was pacing back and forth, shouting at Summer. It was hard to tell what, because Summer was also shouting and testing Winter’s barrier.

Rou was perched anxiously on top of the van to keep away from Sharky.

“Sharky! Stand down!” I shouted, running to pull her back. “We’re not going to hurt Summer!”

Fall did the same for Summer, putting him in a headlock and dragging him away from Winter.

“THAT IS NISEIMON!” Sharky shouted, struggling against me. “HE IS A FAKEY BAD MONSTER! WHY IS THAT TANUKI JERK SMELLING LIKE BAD FOOD?”

“Humans aren’t food, Sharky,” Winter said quietly, lowering her sword.

“He’s my brother,” Fall growled back, struggling to keep Summer's head under his arm.

“NO! REMARE!” Sharky flailed and got out of my grip.

At the same time, Summer elbowed Fall in the gut and escaped. I ran after Sharky, diving in front of her. I came up to my feet with a quick roll. Fall also managed to get ahead of his escaped charge, and we ended up back to back.

“Sharky, stand down,” I said again, seriously.

“WHY DON’T YOU BELIEVE ME?!” Sharky wailed.

“I do!” I said, “I really truly do, Sharky. Right now, you and him, you both aren't what you're supposed to be, so please trust me.”

Sharky snapped her teeth at me once, and turned away.

“Well, well. This isn’t what I expected to see when I got here,” said a low amused voice. Maneki was crouched on the overhang of the back entrance to the hospital. She dropped to the ground neatly and strolled over. “I can’t even guess as to what’s going on. Fall, I thought Summer was trapped?”

“He was,” Fall said shortly.

“I take it you succeeded in freeing him though? Because I’m sure you’re not teaming up with them to fight him,” she purred.

“SHARKY WAS FIGHTING SUMMER. FALL AND GOLDEN SAID TO STOP,” Sharky said, with just a touch of accusation.

“Oh? This is also interesting. Sharky, hello. You look hungry. I thought Foxy stabbed you and shoved you in a tiny fragile paper body?” Maneki asked. Sharky crossed her arms and glanced away. “Although I suppose it doesn’t surprise me that you’re the one teaming up with these humans. I would be interested to know how you got back into a blot though.” At least this time Sharky had the sense not to tell her what she wanted to know. She bared her teeth at the cat instead. “Is that how you’re going to be? Alright. Fall. Why are you getting in the way of Summer fighting this failure of a ReMare?”

“The last time I fought Sharky, she threw me at a tree. I don’t want my brother to get hurt,” Fall said blandly.

“Oh, that’s right. Alright, I suppose that’s understandable,” Maneki said, casually getting out something that looked like a gun carved out of obsidian. I took a step forward, ready to defend the Mei Brigade.

She aimed at me, and then suddenly swung her arm to the left. She pulled the trigger, and blue light erupted from it.

Summer seemed frozen in shock. I started to move to get him out of the way, but Fall was faster.

“No!” I cried. Fall took the blast in the back. He held onto Summer’s shoulders to steady himself. Summer leaned his head back, staring at him, frozen in shock.

“Get out of here, little brother,” Fall said roughly. Summer stared at him a moment longer, and then bolted away.

“NO! BAD NISEIMON!” Sharky shouted, tearing after Summer.

Fall slumped to the ground. I ran to kneel next to him. Winter stepped forward to stand guard. Maneki seemed content to watch us in amusement. She kissed the top of gun and then spun it idly in one hand.

“Fall,” I said, helping him to sit up. The back of his armor was charred. The broken bits started to shimmer with bronze light. Then, all of his armor disappeared into bronze sparkles. Akito’s normal clothes had a large hole burnt into them, and his back was a mess.

“You were right,” Akito said quietly. He laughed, but it quickly turned into a wince, “I was Fall for too long. I’m worn out…”

“Shh, you did enough. Don’t worry,” I said softly. “Rest now.”

Rou hopped down off of the van and came over. I helped him take Akito. “Get him someplace safe,” I said quietly.

“I will,” Rou said.

I nodded. I knew Rou would take good care of him. I stood up and turned towards Maneki. “I’m tired of your games, Maneki. It’s time,” I said, pulling out the orange Memoka. I swiped it across time Driver. “Henshin,” I said. Orange light, flickering like flames, swirled around me like an inferno.

“Dance, Obon! Go!” the belt announced, and my armor changed from gold to a burnished orange. My cape was orange and black, and looked a bit like patterns on a lantern, although it also was a bit like a monarch butterfly too. I stepped out of the fires and walked past Winter. “Prism Fan Charged!” The belt announced. I drew the orange Memoka. It split into two in my hand and orange light fanned out of both of them. I took a second to pose, just to get an idea of how they would handle. And something about the Obon transformation felt like I should move gracefully.

“I see Foxy works quickly. So, this is what has become of Goku’s power? Interesting,” Maneki said. She aimed her gun again. Not at me. She was aiming for Winter. She shot, and I flicked the fan out to catch the blast. I was not going to let that happen again.

“No. I said the games are done. Fight me,” I said. I aimed one fan at her, and then lunged at her.

She laughed and jumped back, landing neatly. “Why should I? That’s not any fun,” Maneki said.

I ignored her and sliced the fans in opposite directions at her. Maneki flipped back, poised again. I pressed forward, slashing at her again. This time I was close enough where she was forced to use her gun to block the fans. She jumped back again, and aimed at me. I stepped neatly to the side, and into a low fighting pose. I swiped at her legs with a low kick. She flipped back, landing neatly. I circled around her, attempting to find a way to break through her quick evasion.

She followed me carefully. I feinted to the right and she stepped back. I took a strong step forward, thrusting the fan out ahead of me like a punch. She gave ground again. I stepped forward again, my stance solid. It was like a dance. She led me back, avoiding my attacks, occasionally lashing out in retaliation. But neither of us landed any solid blows.

I saw an opening. I slashed forward with one fan, and then again with the other. Maneki took another step back. Into Winter.

Winter wrapped an arm around Maneki’s neck. “Hello Kitty,” Winter said quietly. Maneki jolted and struggled against Winter.

“Let me go!” she cried, clawing at Winter’s arms. Winter had strong armored plates along her arms, body and legs, so it was entirely ineffective. Maneki seemed to realize it quickly, and shot her gun awkwardly at me and at Winter. Most of the shots scorched the ground, but one hit Winter’s foot, and another got me in the forearm. It stung, but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle. I think Winter would have been able to hold on longer, but Maneki poured salt in the wound by stomping on her injured foot. Winter’s grip loosened just a smidge, and that was enough for Maneki to weasel her way out.

I was waiting for her though. I slashed her with the fan.

This time it hit. A bright orange scar appeared across her face. She yowled, and a battalion of Blots appeared. They swarmed Winter and I. I spun gracefully, orange light burning away nearby blots. Winter traded punches with one. Once she knocked it out, she summoned her sword again and wiped out a large swath of them. Maneki shot at me again, and it almost caught me off guard, but I just barely managed to deflect it with my fan.

I used that same movement to attack again. I slashed her again, this time scarring her across the shoulder. She grabbed my arm and my shoulder and threw me to the side. I rolled and found my footing, the asphalt scraping under my feet. I sheathed the Prism Fans, and put the Memoka back in the Time Driver. “Vanishing Point!” the belt announced. I jumped into the air. Flames appeared around me, and I planted my foot into her face.

The flames hardened her ink, and her body cracked and shattered like glass. Obon's Vanishing Point was quite impressive. None of my other forms had shattered a ReMare. I landed lightly, and spun around. “We did it!” I said. Winter saluted me, and dispatched the last of the blots.

I went to retrieve Maneki's globe of light, but it was gone. I shifted through the hardened shards. Some of them were still wet on the inside. The wet ink stirred and pooled together. It rose up, forming a shaky skeletal form. For a moment, I thought it would collapse again. Then, a huge geyser of ink burst up from the ground beneath the strange form. I stumbled back. The ink dropped, and the hulking form that it left behind dripped ink. Bright colors started peeking through. Blue and red appeared in vivid stripes, but there were smaller stripes of other colors. A lot of other colors. Green, purple, brown, pink, orange, silver, and gold.

The form roared and shook off the excess ink. I could finally tell what it was. A massive tiger. “Maneki?” I asked, stepping back nervously. Winter stood next to me, her sword in hand. She clenched her fist tighter around her hilt.

The tiger gave a rumbling laugh, “Right, but so very, very wrong, little one. In this form, I am called Tigra. Although Your Majesty is also appropriate. Please, don’t let me stop you from groveling.” She gestured vaguely at us.

I felt like someone had tore the ground out from underneath me. A High ReMare. There was a High ReMare standing in front of us, one that another High ReMare was afraid of. It was just me and Winter. I wanted to panic and run. I couldn’t though. “How?” I squeaked out instead. “You…”

“How is it I disguised my strength and pretended to be a lesser being?” Tigra asked for me, “Simple. Most High ReMares use their power to disguise themselves as human. Honestly, I don’t see the point. Humans are food. I’d much rather disguise myself as another ReMare. It’s more useful. And amusing.” She lashed out suddenly, kicking me in the chest. I flew back, landing with a thud. I grasped at my chest, and tried to push myself up. I had to get up. If I didn't get up, I'd be defenseless.

I couldn't make my body move. Each breath hurt. Asuka had been fast, inflicting a hundred small wounds that individually wouldn’t have been bad, but collectively were devastating. Tigra, on the other hand, had sheer strength. I felt like she had flung a truck at me.

“I can't believe you actually kicked me in the face,” Tigra laughed, tilting her head , and took a step towards my prone body. Desperation surged in me, and I redoubled my efforts to stand. I didn't want to forget. I didn't want to lose my friends.

And then Winter was there, intercepting her, slashing at Tigra with her massive sword. It was a relief, if only for a moment. Tigra ducked gracefully, got under Winter’s guard, knocked her sword out of her hand and grabbed her by the poncho. “That's not good enough, girl.” She shook Winter roughly, and then flung her aside like a doll. Winter crashed into the van. I winced at the sound as I pushed myself to my knees. I almost had it. I could almost stand. If I could stand, I could protect Winter.

Tigra halted that, by placing her foot firmly on my chest, and lazily knocking me over. She kept me pinned. I gasped, and my gloved hands clawed at her foot, desperate to shove it aside. She didn’t budge. “Tell me. Who gave Sharky a blot?”

I switched tactics, and dug my fingers into her foot as deeply as I could. She ignored it. “I won’t…” I struggled to breath, “tell you…”

“So noble. Let’s see. What would inspire you to be chatty? Shall I kill your friend?” She gestured vaguely to where Winter was crumpled against the van.

“No!” I said, as forcefully as I could.

“Then talk.”

She took some of her weight off of the foot pressing down on me so I could breathe. “Minotaur did it,” I said quickly before she decided to make good on her threat anyway.

“And so quickly does your nobility falter,” she said. I glared up at her. I did not care about selling out the other High ReMare. Their threats had been the same, only she was here now. Failing to get a rise out of me, she continued musing,“Minotaur… I see. What was he thinking?” Tigra stepped off of me and paced away.

“He thought Maneki was going to use Summer and Fall to destroy the High ReMares,” I said, gasping for air in between words, and slowly pushing myself up onto my elbows.

“Well, he’s not wrong,” Tigra shrugged. “I am surprised he didn’t confront me directly on it. He should know by now that he’s no good at intrigue. Honestly. Asking Year for help? Of all people?” She shook her head. “Foolish.”

I slowly, painfully, stood back up. I thought through my Memokas. I didn’t know which one would be able to handle her strength. Golden was strong, but I didn’t think it would be enough.

She glanced back at me, “Oh, you’re up again? You shouldn’t have bothered. Save your energy. I’ve got better things to do than crush you to dust. Besides, I am curious to see what you do next. You managed to surprise me.”

“Curiosity killed the cat,” I said, swiping my pink Memoka. I transformed into Sakura, and used the transformation energy to quickly launch a ton of throwing stars at her, and dive to the side to get out of her range.

She caught me with one arm. It felt like I hit a wall. “Satisfaction brought it back,” she said, her voice low and rumbling. And with that final parting shot, she turned back into liquid ink and disappeared into the Under.

 

 


	17. Hunger

Sakura timed out, and I staggered. I took a deep breath and assessed the damage. My chest ached, and I was tired and hungry, but I could move. Winter though, looked too still. I hobbled over to her and knelt. “Hey, Meiko-chan. You okay?” I asked, touching her helmet gently.

She stirred. “Nn…”

“It’s alright. She’s gone,” I said, my voice hitching at the end as tears of relief spilled from my eyes.

Winter sat up slowly and swiped her Driver clear. “Melt, Winter,” her driver announced, before her armor disappeared in a flurry of light.

“That was… not good,” Meiko said softly.

“I know. I didn’t expect her to be a High ReMare. I’m sorry. I would have planned differently if I had known,” I said.

She nodded. “I know. Let's... Let's just go home.”

That sounded very, very good. I helped her up, and we managed to get back to Momiji’s. I figured that would be where Rou would take Akito. I was half right. Rou was sitting working on his computer, but he looked up and was on his feet as soon as he saw us.

“Are you hurt?” he demanded.

“We’ll be fine, I think,” I said, “How is Akito? Is he here?”

Rou shook his head. “I took him to hospital. He’ll… he’ll be okay. It’s just a big wound. And he was transformed for a long time. He needed an IV and proper bandaging.”

“Shit.” I sighed.

“What did you expect? That blast hit him hard enough to kick him out of Fall,” Rou snapped, “I'm not the doctor, he is. I can't...” He gestured helplessly. Meiko sat down at the table near his computer, and patted his chair. Rou sat down, staring at his own hands.

“I know. I know it was bad. It's just... We really need to be at full strength right now,” I said. It wasn't just Tigra, although frankly I was terrified of her. I missed him. I missed being able to rely on him.

“We don’t even know if he’d rejoin us. He was just trying to protect Summer,” Meiko said, crossing her arms and looking away.

“I do,” Rou said firmly, “What happened? Did Maneki get away?”

I shook my head. “We beat Maneki,” I said, slowly.

“Then what’s wrong?” Rou asked, starting to stand back up. Meiko put a hand on his shoulder. He glanced back at her, and then at me, and stood up anyway.

“She was actually Tigra,” I said. “She kicked both of our asses and she knows that Minotaur turned Sharky back into a ReMare.”

“She... what?” Rou said, stepping back. His face went pale, and his eyes widened. “Shit.” He started to pace away, and then turned back to us quickly. “Really?” He demanded again. I nodded. “Shit!”

“So we've gotten into the middle of a fight between High ReMares,” I said, sitting down heavily on a cafe chair.

“It's not just that.” Rou ran a hand through his hair, disheveling it. “I've dealt with Maneki a lot. She's tricky and clever, and that's dangerous enough in a ReMare. But if she's powerful on top of that...”

“Tigra finds us amusing, so she spared us,” Meiko muttered. I glanced at her. I hadn’t realized she had been conscious enough to hear that.

“She’s like that.” Rou sighed. “Like it or not, we're pawns in her game.” We were quiet as that thought sunk in.

“Has Sharky turned up?” I asked suddenly.

“No. I also haven’t heard anything about Summer,” Rou said.

“We should go look for them,” I said, standing back up and wobbled on my feet a little.

“No,” Meiko said firmly.

“But-“ I started.

“You’re hurt. My head is killing me. And Sharky knows where to find us,” Meiki said.

“And if she's hurt? Or tempted?” I asked.

Meiko groaned. “At least eat something before you go running off again,” Meiko said, rubbing her forehead.

My stomach growled in agreement. “Alright…”

“There’s not much in the building. Akito hasn’t been home much in the last couple of days,” Rou said. “Actually, I think you should go see him. Both of you. Get something to eat on the way. I’ll make sensors to set out. Sharky and Niseimon would fall for them.”

We stopped and got burgers on the way out of the arcade and went to the main hospital. Akito had a private room, and was sitting with his bed inclined upwards, watching daytime TV with as much interest as he might have watched a blank wall. Meiko tisked and opened up his curtains, and fussed with his bedside table, ignoring the brief glance Akito gave her.

“Hey, Akito. We brought you some snacks,” I said, setting down a bag of extra takeout that I had bought for him. “How are you doing?”

He was quiet for a long moment, and then sighed. “Pretty sore. What about you?”

“Alright, enough. It’s a little hard to breathe,” I said and explained what had happened.

“Well. That’s a problem,” he said with a weak smile. Even with dark bags under his eyes, even with a massive burn on his chest, he was trying to make things lighter.

“Yeah,” I said, my heart swelling with fondness for my idiot friend. “We’re going to try to find Sharky and Summer after this. We’ll do what we can to protect Togo.”

“Niseimon…” Akito sighed. “Sharky was right, you know. It’s just Togo’s body… I heard Maneki calling him that when she thought I wasn’t listening.”

“Then… Why?” I asked. “You still took an attack for him...”

“Because… Gods, this sounds so selfish but…I was thinking about Rou and Ki… If Niseimon can keep Togo’s body alive… Then… If we can eventually defeat Shika, he’d get his memories back, right? And maybe… Togo could help Niseimon get rid of the blots contaminating him…” Akito closed his eyes and shook his head. “I don’t know. Maneki was pretty rough with Niseimon. It wasn't right.”

“Is that why you…?” I asked, helplessly gesturing. I didn’t want to say that he had betrayed us.

“I wanted information. I didn’t think she’d let anything slip if she thought I hadn’t abandoned you guys… And I was able to protect him...” Akito sighed, “I did what I dared to help you guys but...I’m sorry I didn’t explain. ”

“I don't think that sounds selfish,” I said gently.

“Meiko is glaring at me,” Akito pointed out, “Gonna call me a traitor? Go ahead. I deserve it.”

“I told you to pick a plan that wouldn’t get you killed!” Meiko burst out with sudden savageness, tears streaming down her face. “You stupid jerk!”

Akito blinked, surprised.

“You made us fight you! You’re one of us and you made us fight you! I went all out against you!” Meiko shouted, pacing back and forth. “I was FURIOUS with you!”

“Meiko.” Akito sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed and caught one of her hands in his. “I’m so sorry.” He stared up at her. Pain lined his face, but he held on to her. She froze and stared down at him. “Come on. How many times have I said I didn’t want to get on your bad side?” He gave her a half smile. “It’s not just because you’re strong.”

“Shut up,” she muttered, and pulled her hand away. She sat down in the chair next to his bed. “Sit down, before you hurt yourself.”

A nurse poked her head into the room, “Please do not disturb the patients. He needs to rest.”

“They’re alright, Nana-sensei. She’s just worried about me for some reason,” Akito said flippantly, although he glanced at Meiko with a look that was sort of like wonder.

“Don’t be so casual,” the nurse said, but turned to leave.

“She forgot we were friends in college,” Akito said, shrugging, “Which might be for the best. She had a crush on me, but it didn't work out. Feel kinda bad about it.” He carefully laid back in his bed. “So…What do we do next?” He seemed a lot happier than when we had arrived, like a sad dog finally called to come by his favorite person.

“You’re going to get better. We’ll go find the others. We’ll figure it out after that,” I said. “When do you get out of the hospital?”

“Tomorrow. This is not that serious that I can’t recover at home, and something about being linked to a Driver does make us heal pretty fast considering… I mostly just needed the IV for exhaustion.” His tone turned light, “I don’t recommend staying transformed for several days.”

“Idiot,” Meiko grumbled under her breath.

“I know,” Akito said, agreeably. “Lemme eat some of this.” He broke into the bag of food. “The downside of the Driver helping me heal is that I’m starving and dinner isn’t for hours.”

“I thought so,” I said, settling down on the window sill. “Anything else you can tell us about Maneki or Niseimon?”

“Yeah. She’s super bored. She doesn't really care about the other ReMares, except for their potential to amuse her. Maybe the person they call “his highness,” and Tigra, but if she actually is Tigra, well… That explains a lot. Between the two identities, she has a lot of allies, including Shika and a number of other strong ReMares. But I think she’d throw them all away if they bored her. I think that’s why she didn’t much care that Sharky beat Anubis. She pretends she’s mad about what happened with Asuka, but I think it’s just because Asuka also enjoyed playing games and messing with people. It made planning things interesting for her,” Akito explained.

“That sounds dangerous,” I said, “But that’s also the impression I got from her. Minotaur said something about how she wants to eat all the ReMares and then move on to humanity.”

“No… She’d be bored. She just wants chaos. As I said, there seems to be only one ReMare she genuinely respects, and he’s… Niseimon was terrified of him. I think he’s like… the opposite of the Bright Lady.”

“So, like, a dark dude or something?” I asked.

“Yeah. I don’t know. Rou or Sharky might know more,” Akito said, finishing off a second burger.

My text message pinged. It was Rou saying the sensors were ready. “Thanks, Akito. We’re gonna go. Get some rest, alright?”

“Yup. Try not to take on Tigra until I can help,” Akito said, giving us a thumbs up.

We went back to Momiji’s and Rou gave us some sensors to distribute. Meiko was quiet as we went through town. When we got back, Rou was making a tracer for Sharky.

“Why didn’t you just make that in the first place?” I asked.

“We’re looking for Summer too. And he’s less likely to just come back on his own,” Rou said. My driver chimed obnoxiously, “Looks like something already got to it.”

“At the library, it looks like,” I said, checking the Time Driver. “Meiko? You coming?”

She gave me a steady look. “Yes, of course.”

“Good.” I grinned at her.

“I’ll be here,” Rou said, dragging out the words like saying them was like dragging around a sack of bricks.

“Watch out for Sharky, okay?” I said, feeling a pang of guilt for him not being able to fight on the same level.

Meiko and I got to the library quickly. It looked like it could fit right in with any old office building. Sometimes we held events here, but it was usually like, some juggler or a story teller or something. Nobody famous or anything like that. Still, it was one of Meiko’s favorite places.

We looked around the lobby. It didn’t seem like there was anything around. “I don’t know. This doesn't seem right… They’re both so infernally loud,” I whispered to Meiko, breaking the library quiet.

“It might not be them,” Meiko agreed softly.

“We still have to take care of it,” I said.

“What do you mean, I didn’t return it? I did it last week! I have a receipt!” A woman’s voice rose by the checkout counters.

“No one can remember even seeing it. I can’t delete the fine, unless you pay it,” replied a frazzled sounding librarian.

“I won’t pay it!” she said, slamming a book down on the counter.

“But ma’am…”

“Clearly someone else stole it!” she accused.

I glanced at Meiko. “This could be something…” I said, and walked over. “What’s happening?”

“I’m so sorry for disturbing you,” the librarian started.

“I returned my books last week, and this… this person,” the patron said it like an insult, “says I have to pay a fine because they can’t remember where it’s gone.”

“Could I maybe help? I’m pretty good at finding things. Can we look in your back rooms? It’s possible it got misplaced, and I’d hate for anyone to get into trouble over this,” I said, smiling apologetically at both of them. “My friend here, Meiko, used to work here, so she knows her way around.”

Meiko came up beside me and nodded. “That’s right,” she said quietly. It had been her job in college before I convinced her to become a radio host with me. She had liked the job a lot, I think, and it had been less stressful for her than radio station, but she had promised me that if she didn’t like a job she would quit. And she had really taken to working with the radio equipment. “It's been a long time, Ota-san.”

The librarian sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Koda-san, was it?” Meiko nodded. “If you want. Is that satisfactory?” he asked the angry patron.

“Fine,” she said, crossing her arms. “Just find it.”

“Great. What book are we looking for?” I asked.

The librarian told us the title, and gestured towards the back room. Meiko and I went in. There were rows and rows of storage shelves and a loading area for sorting books on to small carts to take back to the rest of the library.

And there was a ReMare sitting on the table, chewing on a stack of books. It was streaked with silver, and had a face like an owl. It looked up at us.

“Oh dear. I suppose I should have expected this… the origami just looked so delicious. I love paper…” the owl said, sounding fretful. “I’m Theo. You must be Year. I suppose this means we have to fight.”

“Well…” I said, feeling uncomfortable. It was always off-putting to me to have to fight someone who didn’t really seem into it.

“If you want to come quietly to be purified, then that is an option,” Meiko said, knowing that I wasn’t liking the situation.

“Oh no, I’m afraid that’s not an option. If I’m not a ReMare, I can’t eat everything in this library, and that’s such a terrible waste of knowledge,” the owl said, standing up. “And I happen to know of several ReMares who would be very interested in taking apart your Driver. But please. Let’s go to courtyard. I don’t want to wreck any of this in our fight.”

The owl splashed into a puddle of ink and disappeared.

I nodded to Meiko, and we ran out of the library to the courtyard. It was a small garden between a few other buildings. The owl stood in the middle, waiting patiently. “Alright, go ahead and transform. I wish to see this,” Theo said, putting one wing-like hand to his chin.

“Alright…” I said, still feeling awkward about the fight. I put the Time Driver on my waist and swiped it with the light blue Memoka. “Henshin!” I said.

Blue light showered down on me and the belt made a xylophone scale sound, while saying “It’s raining! It’s pouring for you! Go Rain!”

I posed briefly, and then gestured at Theo. “Let’s do this!”

Meiko transformed into Winter too, stepping through her sigil and standing next to me.

“Oh my, she’s one of you too? That really is…hm. Oh well. I don’t mind,” Theo said, ruffling his feathers. The feathers detached, shooting out in every direction. Winter hid behind her sword, and I simply dodged the feathers. They seemed slow, but that was because of Rain’s easy movements. I rushed the owl, punching at him. He jumped back, launching more feathers at me. I pulled out the Prism Whip and struck them down. With a flick of my wrist, I changed the direction of the whip, striking Theo’s feathery arms.

He grunted in pain and brought the wing in close to him. Winter had managed to get behind him, and he swung around to fling more feathers at her, to keep her from rushing him too. “This is hardly good sportsmanship,” he said, breathing hard.

Out of nowhere, Summer came crashing down, from a tree, smashing into Theo. Theo’s form wobbled, and he liquefied and reappeared on the other side of the courtyard. “See! This is terribly rude!”

Summer snarled and spun around to face Theo.

“Summer!” I called, surprised.

“Two on one was acceptable, but this is underhanded!” Theo continued to complain.

“He’s not with us,” Winter muttered.

Summer straightened up, and glanced my way, looking very startled. He looked around, and noticed Winter was there too. He backed away slowly.

He bolted.

Theo had taken advantage of the distraction. He rushed me, and grabbed me by the shoulders. I grappled with him. “Winter!” I called.

“I’ve got it!” she called, and dismissed her sword to run after Summer.

“There. One on one. Just what you wanted,” I said, gritting my teeth under my helmet.

“See! I thought you would agree with me! I had heard from Asuka that you were such a chivalrous lady,” Theo said, sounding pleased. He lifted me up by my arms and flung me aside. I landed on my feet, skidding a few feet.

“Sure. But I’ve got things to do right now,” I said, and switched to Obon. It was more fragile, but I needed the firepower. I slashed quickly with the two fans. The owl made an annoyed noise, and flung more feathers at me. I blocked and burnt them with the fans, and slashed at him again.

“This is not looking good… Oh no, it’s not…” the owl muttered to himself, “Then… I should try this…” He took a deep breath and his head spun around. He shouted and spun his head back to its normal position.

The ground seemed to spin under me. I staggered. Even Obon’s grace wasn’t enough to counteract the dizziness. Theo used the opportunity to pepper me with feathers. I couldn’t block all of them, because I couldn’t tell where they were coming from.

“Agh!” I cried. It hurt. I was still tired. I lashed out Theo, and missed. He struck me with another barrage of feathers. I put the fans away and stood still, closing my eyes against the spinning scenery. He attacked again.

I jumped up and my belt cried out “Vanishing point!” I planted my foot into his face, and everything stopped spinning. He dissolved into a sticky pile of ooze, and a silver ball of light rose from it. I picked it up carefully.

“I’m sorry. I’ll get you back to the library when you’re strong enough,” I said quietly.

I swiped my Time Driver clear, and it said, “Erase, Bye bye!”

I was feeling the fight. It was starting to feel like I was always fighting. At least two big fights today. And yesterday and the day before had been a mess too. And I knew I wasn’t done.

Back in the lobby, the library had suddenly found the book the patron had been looking for, and was apologizing profusely.

I didn’t bother engaging with them. I needed to go find Winter and Summer. I got to my bike, and drove off in the direction that they had gone in. I caught up to Winter in front of a preschool. “Hey! Hop on!”

She came over to me, “I lost him. Too slow…”

“Don’t worry about it. We’ll find him.” The sensor’s alarm went off again. “Where this time?” I said, covering a yawn with my hand as I checked my Driver. “Huh.”

“What is it?”

“Looks like it's right here,” I said, eyeing the preschool. “Let’s go.” I said, jumping off my bike and going up to the gate.

Sharky was there, surrounded by confused kids. She had orange and black spirals added to her blue streaks. “Oh no…” I said. I launched myself over the gate. “Sharky! What are you doing?!” I shouted.

Sharky flinched, and turned around. “MEIKI! HI!” Even her shouting sounded guilty.

“Are you eating these kids’ memories?” I demanded.

“ONLY A LITTLE. I GOT LOST FOLLOWING SUMMER AND I WAS SO HUNGRY. I’M SORRY!” Sharky shouted, bowing deeply to me.

I sighed. “Sharky, let’s go. We’ll fix it.”

Sharky reluctantly looked at the kids and then back at me. “OKAY. WE CAN PLAY NOW?”

“Yeah. There’s a park nearby. We’ll fight,” I said. I felt so tired. I was hoping we could have done it when she had only one color, but she had managed to get three. She’d be stronger, and I didn’t expect that she would go easy on me just because she wanted me to purify her. She liked fighting. “Winter, could you take my bike and keep looking for Summer?” I asked.

“Are you going to be alright?” she asked quietly, staring at the confused kids from the gate of the preschool.

“Me? Yeah,” I said, although I wasn’t entirely sure that was true. Everything just seemed like dry fall leaves to me right now. Like any one of my friends could crumble at any moment. Myself included.

“Ok. Let’s meet up later back at Momiji Café,” she said, before driving off on my bike.

I turned back to Sharky. “Come on,” I said, and vaulted the gate again. Sharky followed me, head hung, over to a nearby park.

“SHARKY IS BAD. SORRY,” Sharky announced, scuffing her feet on the ground. “MEIKI IS ANGRY, AND I AM SORRY.”

“I’m not angry, Sharky. I’m sorry too. ReMares eat memories. I should have tried harder to return you to your origami. I know that you don’t really want to do that,” I said.

“I DID THOUGH! I AM VERY HUNGRY!” Sharky said earnestly. “I WANT TO EAT YOU TOO!”

“I know you don’t really want to though. You want to go back to the origami, right? Where you’re not hungry?” I said, getting my Time Driver out and putting it against my waist.

“I DON’T KNOW. I LIKE BEING STRONG TOO. BUT YOU WON’T BE MY FRIEND…” Sharky trailed off.

“You will be strong again, Sharky. I promise it, okay? And not hungry. Can you trust me with that?” I asked, getting out the gold Memoka.

Sharky thought about it for a moment, and then nodded, “YES!”

I swiped the gold Memoka across the Time Driver and shouted “Henshin!”

“Glitter, Golden! Go!” The belt chimed. Golden fish of light leaped around me, until my golden armor appeared.

“Okay, Sharky. Let’s do this,” I said, and charged at her. She also ran at me at a full tilt. We crashed together, grappling roughly. She snapped at my arm, and I ducked lower and grabbed her around the middle. I lifted her, and dang she was heavy. That was a bad idea. She flailed and I lost my grip, and dropped her. She fell mostly on me. I struggled to catch my breath, but after a moment, I grabbed her shoulders and shoved, rolling us both over so I was on top. I punched her snout and she shouted and grabbed my helmeted head and shoved me to the side. I rolled and regained my feet. Sharky lumbered back to her feet. She was grinning ferociously.

“Prism Claws! Go!” my belt chimed, and I took out the Memoka and activated it. Golden claws of light sprung forth and I scraped them against each other, creating sparks, before charging Sharky again.

She dodged, sliding low to the ground and sticking her leg out to trip me up. I stumbled, not expecting it. I spun around to face her again, and I realized I was grinning too. As tired as I was, it was fun to fight her. I didn’t have to think about it. Everything was straightforward and a joy. I was too busy channeling the feral energy of it to think about all the complicated games and betrayals we had been dealing with. I leaped at her, aiming claws for her shoulder. I scraped them slightly before she dodged out of the way, punching me in the gut. I slid back, and this time she jumped at me. I blocked her bite with my arm and aimed the claws for her chest. She howled, wild and loud, and grabbed me by the arms.

I was hit by a wave of hunger. I pulled myself inward, terrified by the sense of deep deep bottomless need. My eyes were open, but I couldn't focus. I needed to focus.

And suddenly I was in a dark hazy scene, the hunger like a heart beat, pulsing steadily. Everything had a slight blue tinge, but there were splatters of black marring my vision. I recognized it as a memory. Her memory?

I could see her chasing after Summer. The memory pulled me along. She shouted after him, angry that he had escaped harm at the expense of her friend. She caught up with him and tackled him, biting at his arm. Summer had yelled, and hit her with his nunchaku He got away, but his transformation dropped. He was back in his human form. He scrambled back away from Sharky.

“Stop! Don’t hurt me!” he shouted, his back up against a stone fence.

“BECAUSE OF YOU, AKITO IS HURT! BECAUSE OF YOU, MY FRIENDS ARE SAD!” Sharky shouted, moving closer. “YOU ARE A BAD FAKEY MONSTER!”

“I didn’t want any of that! Maneki, she made me go into a human body! She would have killed me out of hand!” he shouted back. They were both so loud. “Please! I’ll do anything! You’re hungry right? I have memories! Here!” He put a hand over his belt and an indigo orb slowly emerged. He thrust it out towards Sharky.

Sharky hesitated. She was hungry. And that was a whole spirit full of memories. Even before, when she first became a ReMare, she had two sets of light. Now she only had one, and she was so desperately hungry and weak. “SHARKY IS NOT A BAD REMARE!”

“Neither am I! Let me go, and it’s yours! You’ll need to be stronger, right? To fight Maneki with your friends!” He thrust it out again for her.

Sharky couldn’t find fault with that logic. She could take it and still grab the boy and take him back to her friends. They could judge him as they saw fit. And she wouldn’t have hunger gnawing at her for at least a little while. She reached out and took it. Memories flooded her, a roar of light drowning out the heartbeat. She was full! Full of light and power. She could help her friends like this! She could fight other ReMares for them!

Summer had disappeared.

And she was ravenous, the hunger louder, more insistent than before.

I was thrust out of the memory when she flung me against a park bench. I got back to my feet. “Oh, Sharky…” I said softly. “We’ll make it safe for you soon…” I replaced the Memoka. I jumped up into the air.

The belt announced “Vanishing Point!” and I aimed my finishing kick at her. I crashed into her. The ink melted away into the ground, and two globes of light appeared from the mess. One was Sharky’s blue light, and the other was dark indigo. The one Summer had taken from Mothren.

I picked them both up gently. “I’m sorry,” I said, “You’ll have to help us in another way, Sharky.” I carried them with the silver one I had won earlier.

It was a long walk back to Momiji’s. I got back as it was getting dark. I walked in, and Rou was working. “Hey,” I said, and dropped the globes of light in front of him. He looked up, surprised.

“What happened?” he asked, “Meiko came back hours ago grumbling about having lost Summer. She went back out to look for you.”

“The first alarm was another ReMare. The second was Sharky. She was eating memories. Niseimon gave her Mothren’s light and it made her too hungry,” I explained, plopping down in a chair. “I’m tired.”

“I bet. I ordered pizza. It’s in the fridge for you,” Rou said, observing the orbs.

The memory of pulsing hunger echoed in my mind. It turned my stomach. “Not hungry,” I said, resting my head on the table. I hadn’t realized that ReMares felt like that. It was terrifying. To feel that empty was beyond my understanding.

“Seriously?” he asked, standing up and attempting to feel my forehead. “You don’t have a fever…”

I grumbled about him bothering me, and stood up. “I’m going to take a nap upstairs.” I shuffled over to the elevator.

“Alright,” Rou said reluctantly. “But give me your driver. I need to check it.”

I realized it was still around my waist. “Hn.” I said, and took it off, tossing it over to him. He caught it easily, and I got on the elevator. Once upstairs in the dark, messy room, I made a beeline for the couch and flopped down on it. I fell asleep almost immediately.

I didn’t sleep well.

I had dreams of fighting, of Maneki or Tigra watching over everything we did and manipulating it. Everything was going according to her plans. And all of my friends were her pawns. I was one of her pawns. I didn’t know what to do.

An eldritch deer monster lurked in the shadows.

Minotaur was angry about us breaking our deal. I tried to plead that I couldn’t have kept his involvement a secret. That I had done my best to honor the terms of our agreement.

Sharky doing something stupid so that she could fight.

Rou doing something stupid so he could fight.

Meiko angry. Akito injured.

Togo dead.

I tried to protect them, reaching out to them, but I no matter how hard I ran or how far I stretched out my arm, they were out of reach.

A dark shadow over everything.

Light flickering out.

Everything was dark and still.

 

 


	18. Family

I woke up to sunlight on my face, and the quiet sounds of summer in a household awake. Cicadas buzzed outside, and I could hear Rou typing away. He was there. He was safe. I sat up slowly.

“Good morning,” I muttered.

“Afternoon,” he replied distracted. I watched him work quietly for a while.

“You’re amazing, you know?” I said, and yawned.

“Yes,” he said shortly, and glanced over at me with an amused expression, “Are you alright? Sharky didn’t hit your head too hard, did she? That was out of nowhere.”

“I can’t compliment you now?” I said, grumpy.

“No, please. Shower me with praise,” he said. “Why am I amazing?”

“You just… are. You’re making the best of this situation. I always see you working on the Drivers or on Memokas or whatever. And… I know you want to fight. But… It’s like you are, because your weapons are what keep us safe,” I said trailing off, feeling embarrassed to explain my thoughts when I was still muddled and sleepy.

He smiled. “Thanks, Meiki,” he said. “I appreciate it. Even though my fears that you’ve hit your head are not alleviated.”

“Oh hush,” I said. “I didn’t sleep well.”

“I know. You were talking to yourself a lot.” Rou said.

“What did I say?” I said, alarmed.

“You kept saying how you couldn’t hold all of us. It sounded like maybe you kept dropping us?” Rou said, amused.

“So much has happened lately,” I said slowly. “I worry I won’t be able to keep you all safe.”

“Don’t take on too much yourself. We’re here too,” Rou said. I heard the elevator ping, and the doors open.

Akito walked out, wearing a russet yukata that had orange spider lilies printed on it. His obi was brown, and tied simply in a masculine fashion. “Good afternoon!” He said cheerfully. He had a fan, which he snapped closed and pointed at me. “Are you ready for the festival?”

I blinked at him, “You’re back from the hospital already? Aren’t you supposed to be resting?”

“He is,” Rou said sternly. “I only went to get him a few hours ago.”

“I’m fine!” Akito caught Rou's gaze and relented, “Well, no, it actually hurts a lot, but come on! Should I really deprive the festival of this handsome visage?” Akito said, gesturing at himself.

“Yes, you really should,” Rou said, dryly.

“You just want to keep me for yourself! That’s not fair to everyone else, Jiro!” Akito said, thrusting the fan at Rou in admonishment.

Rou rolled his eyes. “You can show off later. You need to rest, idiot.”

“But I’ve got yukata for you, Meiki, and Meiko, too!” Akito whined, setting a large shopping bag on Rou’s table. “And Meiko and Meiki have to go to the festival anyway, for the radio. I want to go too!”

“Oh right, they moved that to tonight,” I said, glancing at my phone.

“Right! I heard there’s going to be ten thousand fireworks!” Akito said, pulling out a yukata.

“And they finally got Tenjin 48 to come again to sing,” I said, catching his enthusiasm.

Akito laughed, and started singing the chorus of one of their songs.

Rou slammed both of his hands on the table with a loud thud, and stood up. “Akito. You’re a doctor. You know better than this.”

Akito’s expression fell, and he immediately stopped goofing off. “I know that not all wounds are physical. If I can fix some of what I did… I want to try. I’ll be careful about my back. And you can boss me around and tell me to rest as much as you’d like. Promise.”

Rou glared at him, but Akito met his eyes steadily. Rou gave up with a sigh, “Fine. But you’re to listen to me. And if there’s a ReMare, you are definitely not allowed to transform.”

“Yes, Jiro-sensei,” Akito said somberly, as if Rou was his doctor. “Meiki! Come check out your yukata!”

I got up and he thrust a beautiful white yukata at me. It had faint patterns of colorful pastel fireworks, and the obi was a very loud but beautiful riot of colorful butterflies. He also had a package of small little butterfly pins in a whole rainbow of sparkly colors. If they had been any bigger, they would have been gaudy, but they were prefect. “It’s lovely,” I said softly, touching the soft cotton. “Thank you.”

“Go try it on! I’ll help you with the bow. And Rou! Here!” He gave Rou a neatly folded black yukata. It had a somber gray pattern to it, but the obi was bright pink.

Rou muttered something about not agreeing to anything about that, but when I came back from putting on my yukata in the kitchen, he was back at his computer, wearing the yukata. He was blushing and avoiding meeting either of our gazes. It suited him.

Akito helped me do the bow. “It’s beautiful… You’re good at this. I didn’t expect that,” I said, when I could admire his handiwork from a mirror.

“It’s one of those things. Mom wanted us to be cultured or something,” he said, shrugging, and then wincing as the movement pulled on his wounds. “So we learned how to do it. I can do flower arraigning too!”

“Really? That sounds like such an old lady skill,” I said, amused.

“Sure, but who cares?” Akito said flippantly.

“Fair enough,” I said agreeably. I sat in front of the mirror, carefully undoing my French braid and brushing it through. I redid it in a more complicated braid, putting in the pins at careful points to hold it together and add a bit of sparkle.

“Why don’t you just braid it as usual?” Rou asked, glancing up from his work.

“Because it’s a festival, Rou! You can’t just do normal boring hair at a festival,” I said, scandalized. It was like he had suggested I just shave it all off.

“Alright, alright. Whatever you say,” Rou said, going back to his computer. “Is Meiko showing up any time soon?” He sounded like he was hoping for someone calm, who wasn’t caught up in festival nonsense.

“She’s meeting us there. I dropped off her yukata earlier,” Akito said distractedly, attacking Rou’s fluffy pink hair with a soft brush. Rou grumbled but allowed him to brush it.

“How did that go?” I asked, looking away from my reflection.

“She slammed her door in my face,” Akito said pleasantly, as if he had announced how happy she was to see him.

“When did you have time to do all this? You were napping when I came up here,” Rou grumbled, and swatted Akito away from his hair. Rou ran his hands through his hair thoroughly, making it a fluffy mess again.

“I was napping! But then I remembered I bought yukata for everyone last week, and I had to go tell Meiko I was alright. She worries. It’s like she cares about me or something,” he said the last bit as an aside to me, as if the very idea was ridiculous.

“She does,” I said, finishing my hair. I admired my work. “Akito, would you like me to do your hair too?” I asked.

“Yes!” He said, and I sat him down in front of me. I took out his hair tie to let his hair down. He closed his eyes and was quiet as I brushed his shoulder length blond hair. I fussed with his part, so that his hair lay in an attractive way, and added one of the left over pins to bring it out of his face on one side.

“Don’t stop, he’s being quiet,” Rou stage whispered at me. Akito opened one eye to glance at him but otherwise ignored Rou as I continued to work.

“There!” I said, and set down my tools.

He opened his eyes to look. “Ah! I look so cool! Thanks!”

“You’re welcome,” I said, pleased. “Rou? Shall I do yours too?”

“No,” Rou said shortly. “You should eat something.”

“I…” Hunger. Hunger. Hunger. I shivered. But I saw the look of concern in Rou’s face, “Right! I’m starving. I’ll go grab the pizza,” I said, and took the terrible stairs to go downstairs to Momiji Café. I didn’t want to wait for the elevator, and have one of them notice I was lying. I sat for a moment at the counter, trying to work up the energy to eat. I couldn’t. But I knew I should. I sighed and dragged myself to the kitchen and got the pizza out of the fridge. It was still full. Rou hadn’t touched it at all. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had bought it entirely for me. I took out a piece and went to take a bite. I couldn’t make myself do it. Maybe if it was warmed up. I put the slice in the microwave.

The elevator pinged and Akito appeared downstairs. “Hey, you alright? Jiro said you didn’t eat at all last night after fighting a ton of ReMares.”

“I’m fine, I’m eating now,” I said, gesturing at the microwave.

“Alright. After you finish, we’ll get going,” Akito said, and sat down on one of the chairs, bracing himself against the table. “Don’t push yourself too hard, okay?”

“I could say the same to you, Akito,” I said, pulling the pizza out of the microwave. “You're the one that just got out of the hospital.”

“Oh, I’ll be alright. As long as I don’t pull any of the scabs loose, it’s good to move around. It keeps the muscles from getting weak,” he said, gesturing dismissively. I glanced at him. That wasn’t exactly what I meant, and I was fairly certain he knew it.

“Alright,” I said, and forced myself to take a bite of pizza. The crust was like cardboard, the cheese was like plastic, and the other toppings were rubbery. Or worse. At least cardboard had a flavor. I chewed anyway. “There.” I forced myself to swallow the tasteless food. “All ready to go! Is Rou coming?”

“He’s finishing up some stuff, but he’ll be right down. He was checking again to make sure nothing was wrong with your driver,” Akito said.

“Because I was more tired than hungry last night? That’s silly,” I said. “Did he say whether or not he had Sharky back into an origami body yet?”

“Yes,” Rou said, coming inside from the stairwell. “It was the first thing I did. She’s safe, but she’s sulking… And I’ve been busy with other things. Namely,” he paused to hand me the Time Driver, “This, and this.” He handed over two Memokas. One was silver, and the other was indigo.

“Two upgrades? I’m jealous,” Akito whined. “Can I at least get my driver back too?”

“No,” Rou said.

“Bully,” Akito complained.

“He’s right, Akito,” I said gently. “If anything happens, Meiko and I will take care of it. You need to take a break.”

Akito whined about that too, as we headed out for the bus. Meiko still had my bike, and it would be awkward for any of us to ride a motorcycle in a yukata.

Despite the rumors of ReMares and the rescheduling, there were plenty of people in yukata on the bus. Everyone got off at the park near the river. The paths were lined with stalls lit with lanterns and strings of light, and the smell of grilled meat and cotton candy filled the air. I could hear music, and lead the way to the radio station’s booth. Oscar was on duty as the DJ, and was playing a lot of beautiful traditional music.

Meiko was there, talking to Okuda-san. She was beautiful. The rest of the festival became a blur of light and color as I focused on her. Her cute short hair was done in soft waves, and she had a beautiful red flower hair pin, that had a trail of soft flowers hanging from it. Her yukata was a pale mint green and white, and the print gave off a subtle impression of ocean waves. Her obo matched her hair decorations, and was rich poinsettia red. She laughed at something someone said, and caught my gaze. She blushed, and smiled.

“Meiko! You wore the yukata I brought for you!” Akito called out, breaking the spell.

Meiko excused herself from our boss and walked over, “I did. It would be wasteful not to,” she said primly.

“You’re pretty,” I said, somewhat stupidly.

“You too,” she said, smiling up at me. “They want us to go chat with local businesses and organizations that have booths, but other than that, we’re free to do what we want tonight.”

“Oh. Good,” I said, still staring at her.

“You’ve went and broke her,” Rou said, putting an arm around Meiko. “Why don’t we go get some cotton candy and let her recover?”

“Alright,” Meiko said, amused. I stood there stupidly as she walked away.

“Well, well. I did good, right?” Akito said, nudging my side.

I shook my head, trying to clear the cotton candy that my brain was clearly made of tonight. “Yeah,” I said, and that was the extent of my eloquence.

Rou and Meiko came back with two massive bags of pink and blue cotton candy. We walked over to a large tent where people were taking their festival snacks and sat to eat it. I still wasn’t hungry, but Meiko held out a tuft of cotton candy and said “Say ah!” like something someone on a cheesy date in a movie would say, and I let her feed it to me.

Rou snickered, eating his own cotton candy. Akito tried to sneak some from Rou's, but Rou held the bag of cotton candy above his head. “You shouldn’t be eating candy, you’re hurt. Eat something healthy,” he commanded, and stuffed another pink puff of sugar into his mouth.

“Jerk!” Akito pouted, and gave Meiko and me puppy dog eyes. “Can I have some, please?” He begged.

Meiko looked thoughtful, “I don’t know. Rou might be right.”

“Meiki!” Akito said, trying to get me on his side.

“Yeah, what she said,” I said distractedly.

“Hm,” Meiko took another bite of cotton candy, “Well, I suppose you can have the rest.” She gave him the rest of the bag. There wasn’t much more than a fistful left of blue cotton candy.

“Meiiiiiko!” Akito said, fawning over her, “You are a goddess, distributing mana from heaven.” He took the bag of cotton candy with much pomp and circumstance.

“Yes, I am,” Meiko agreed lightly. “Meiki, shall we go do the rounds? We need to talk to people.”

“Yeah, okay!” I said, jumping up, and extending a hand for her. She took it and we walked around to some of the shops. I tried my best to be charming and network for the radio station, and get quotes and stories from people to talk about later. Some people expressed concerns about the ReMares, and I tried to allay those fears the best I could. Meiko was very distracting though.

After we did the rounds, we ended up in a quieter area to talk.

“Are you okay, Meiki?” Meiko asked.

“Yeah, I’m just… You’re really pretty,” I said.

“You said that, before,” Meiko said, amused, “You’ve seen me in a yukata before, you know.”

“I was pretty dumb about it then too, but I didn’t realize it was because I liked you,” I said, blushing and rubbing the back of my neck.

“You’re adorable,” Meiko said disparagingly, and stood on her toes to kiss me.

She broke away with a smile. “Did the fireworks start early?” I asked, dazed.

She laughed and punched me in the arm, “Don’t be silly,” she admonished. “Come on, let’s go back to the boys.”

“Alright,” I said, happy to follow her lead.

The boys were in an intense battle against goldfish. They both had little paper scoops that they were carefully attempting to trap goldfish with.

“Do you want to try it?” I asked, as we joined them.

“I’m no good at it,” Meiko said, shaking her head.

“Then let the master show you how it’s done!” I boasted, cracking my knuckles.

“Oho! The master, huh?” Akito said, standing up slowly. He grimaced in pain, and Rou shot him a worried look. Akito was quickly all grins again. “By all means, show this humble student!”

“Yeah, I give up. I’m going to try the ring toss next,” Rou said, standing up to watch me.

I crouched down in front of the small pool, and gave the booth attendant a few hundred yen for some nets. With a quick careful movement, I scooped a fish out of the pool…just to have the paper immediately rip. “Dang it,” I grumbled, and tried again. The papers kept ripping at the last moment. “Again!” I said, and took the last net.

“Some master,” Rou said, amused. I felt well aware of their gaze on me, and focused extra hard. This time, when I brought the net up, the paper held. A goldfish wiggled on the net, and the attendant congratulated me and put it in a plastic bag filled with water.

“Take good care of it,” he said, and I agreed.

I stood up and showed it to the others, “See! I told you! I’m a master at goldfish scooping!”

“Nice!” Akito said, “Let’s do the ring toss next!” He said, pointing dramatically over to the next booth. Rou went ahead and bought a few rings for himself. Akito, Meiko and I got some too. This one, Rou did the best at the game, winning a plastic fox mask, which he promptly put on the side of his head. Meiko won a smaller prize, a squishy plastic light up ring, which she gave me. I didn’t win, but I let it go at that. Akito lost and played again, and lost again. Rou dragged him away before he bought another set of rings because his face was starting to get gray.

We found a decent place to watch the singers and Rou bought an assortment of grilled chicken on sticks, which he shared. It smelled good, but when I ate it, it tasted like ash. The others seemed to be enjoying it, and Rou was watching me like a hawk, so I smiled and didn’t say anything. Akito ate my extra ones, snatching them away and saying “You snooze, you lose!”

Then the dancing started. “I want to dance,” Rou said, watching the crowd gather.

“Me too,” Meiko said.

“Meiki, sit with Akito. Don't let him do anything stupid,” Rou said.

“Hey!” Akito objected. Rou gave him a look. “Alright, fair.”

“We’ll be back,” Rou said, taking Meiko's hand and heading towards the dancing.

“But,“ I started. They were already gone. I sighed. “I wanted to dance too.”

“How much you want to bet he’s tattling on you?” Akito said, popping open a bottle of ramune and handing it to me. “Since you’ve hardly touched any food.”

“I ate!” I objected, “He just wants someone to babysit you, Akito.” I poked his side and he winced. “You’ve been pushing too hard.”

“I'm fine,” Akito said, pushing my hand away. We sat in silence for a while. I think both of us realized that we were both struggling to keep up a façade of normality. It was hard to call him out on it without calling into question my own problems. “Tonight has been nice though. I was afraid…”

“Afraid?” I prompted him for more, although I could guess where he was going with it.

“The Mei Brigade is important to me, Meiki,” Akito said, watching the dancers. He sighed. “Maybe I am selfish. I want things to just go back to normal. Like nothing happened.”

“Something has happened though,” I said, “And consequences are important. Even if it’s hard.” I paused for a second, “If it makes you feel any better, I still like you. I understand what you did. I’d have probably done the same if the ReMares had done something like that to one of my loved ones.”

He smiled weakly. “Thanks.” He paused. “Meiko is still angry with me,” Akito said. “She’s being polite, for your sake, and Rou’s but…”

“You once told me that Meiko is…” I made air quotes around the next words. “Hella gay for justice,” I continued, slowly. “She really thought you had betrayed us. And when she found out you… kind of didn’t… she was upset at herself for not realizing it, and upset that you had put yourself into danger. She’s mad because she cares about you.”

“I thought that too, but,” Akito trailed off, sounding unconvinced.

“Talk to her,” I said firmly. “And to Rou too. You said some things that hurt him.”

Akito sighed, and stared out at the crowd again.

He stood up abruptly.

“What is it?” I asked, standing up too. I wasn’t about to let him run off without me.

“It’s him,” Akito said urgently.

“Niseimon?” I asked. Akito nodded, and I followed his gaze. Nisei was at the radio station booth, talking to Oscar. “Do you want to go to him?” I asked.

Akito hesitated. “Let’s get the others first.”

I nodded, and we went together to the edge of the dancing. I waved Rou and Meiko over, and they broke away to join us.

“Is there a ReMare?” Rou asked.

“Sorta,” I said.

“Niseimon is over at the radio station booth. I want your advice on what we should do,” Akito said, sounding more vulnerable than he had all night. I could tell that a lot of his deference was directed towards Meiko.

She looked thoughtful for a long moment. “We had planned to capture him so that we could protect him. If you think he’ll come quietly now, we can talk to him. Is that satisfactory?” she asked, glancing at Rou and me for confirmation, before settling her gaze on Akito.

“Yes,” he said.

“Then let’s go say hello,” she said lightly.

We spread out and walked over to him. Akito approached first, and the rest of us sort of fanned out around Nisei to keep him from immediately running.

“You!” Nisei said when he noticed Akito. He did immediately turn to run, and noticed the rest of us. He turned reluctantly back to Akito. “What do you want? I won’t thank you.”

“I don’t expect you to, bro,” Akito said, holding his hands up like it couldn’t be helped. “I stuck my nose in, and it got you in trouble. I’d like to make it good.”

Nisei looked at Akito suspiciously. “How?”

“Stick with us,” Akito replied simply. “We’ll protect you.”

“I don’t need it,” Nisei said.

“What will you do?” I asked, “Won’t Maneki attack you again?”

“She was just doing that to get to Akito. I don’t see why I have to be your friends. He’s not going to attack me,” he gestured at Akito, “and I doubt the rest of you will either, now that you’ve welcomed him back.”

“The last part is true,” Meiko said firmly, and Akito gave her a relieved glance.

“But Maneki… she’ll attack you if she thinks it will distract me,” Akito said.

“Listen. Do you really want to ally yourself to someone who thinks you’re disposable?” Rou said.

“Who says I have to ally myself to anyone?” Nisei said, loudly. “You don’t actually care about me! You just want this body back.”

“That’s not true, bro. We want to help spirits too.” Akito said.

“I saw Sharky’s memories. You’re scared,” I said softly.

There was a crashing sound at the other side of the festival, and people screamed.

“That doesn’t sound good,” I said, looking in the direction of the chaos. I couldn’t make out what it was, but I bet it was a ReMare.

“Well?” Akito asked, but Nisei had managed to use our momentary distraction to disappear into the crowds.

“We gave him our message. Whether he takes it or not is up to him. Let’s go!” I said, and hurried to where the noise had come from. Meiko and the others followed.

In the center area, where people had been dancing, there were a ton of blots running around, harassing people. On the stage was Minotaur.

Meiko put her driver on her waist and stamped it. “Henshin!” She stepped through the glowing sigil that appeared and became Winter.

I uncapped my new silver Memoka and swiped it across the Time Driver, shouting “Henshin!” I placed the driver against my waist and put the Memoka in the slot.

“WISDOM AND POWER! GO! SILVER!” The belt announced. Silver globes of light drifted around me, and my armor appeared. It was silver and gray, with bits of black. The cape looked a bit like there were three large silver moons on a dark gray background. It felt a lot heavier than my other armors.

“Good! You’re here!” Minotaur pointed at us, and clenched his fist. “You did not honor our deal!”

“I defeated Maneki!” I said, shoving into a nearby blot that had absorbed some green light from someone. “And then I took Sharky back!”

“Then WHY pray tell, was Maneki gloating about beating the three of you? I will not be fooled!” Minotaur bellowed.

“Sorry, Minotaur, but she’s got your number. Maneki is Tigra. She’s playing you,” Akito said, leaning against Rou in an effort to look casual, but his face was looking gray with pain.

“That is nonsense!” Minotaur slashed the air with his arm and jumped down from the stage. He shoved some blots out of his way to make a direct path to us.

Winter went forward to batter Minotaur with her sword, He grabbed it, and I could hear the blade burning his hands. He ignored it, and shoved the sword away, knocking Winter off balance.

The Prism weapon wasn’t charged yet, and it didn’t seem to be one of the faster ones, like Sakura. I lurched forward to block an attack meant for Winter, and barely felt the impact. I shoved back, and landed a punch to his side. He grunted and grabbed me and attempted to fling me aside. I slid back a few feet, but didn’t go flying.

Silver seemed heavy duty. I liked that. It wasn’t as easy to move in as Rain or Obon, but the shear stopping power of the armor was useful too. And it was steadier than the wild Golden. I stepped forward again to punch at his face. He blocked, and countered. Winter took it upon herself to get rid of some of the blots, trying to watch both my back, and Rou and Akito.

Rou started gathering stragglers, directing people to stay away from blots. Akito watched, rocking on the balls of his feet, as if it was taking everything he had to not rush into the fray.

Minotaur and I were grinding towards a stalemate. Neither of us was fast, and I got the impression he was shrugging off every punch like it was made of paper. It seemed odd. He knocked me back a few feet, and I kicked a blot in the head. It immediately dissolved. Silver was strong. It felt like I should be doing more damage.

I was just thankful that his attacks weren’t hurting me that much either.

I kneed him in the chest and he stumbled back. He pulled back a massive fist, and decked me. It nearly knocked me to the side, but I used it to swoop low and tackle him. He slid back a little, and then lifted me up, and threw me into a nearby stand.

“Enough, Butterfly! I will get serious,” Minotaur announced, and flexed. The lights from nearby blots all went out, and he brightened. He tromped towards me. Winter intercepted him and blocked the way, spinning her sword low in an attempt to get his legs. He jumped, and rather than just simply jumping over the blade, he kicked her. Winter went flying back, crashing into a few blots. By then I had managed to get up.

“Winter! No!” I called.

“Prism Charge Complete!” My belt chimed.

I swore and drew it.

“Prism Ax! Go, go, go!” It announced, and a massive silver ax head glowed out of one end of the elongated Memoka.

“A worthy weapon, but it will do as little as your friend’s,” Minotaur rumbled, and charged me.

He was fast.

I hadn’t expected that. He was aiming for me with his wicked looking horns. I brought down the ax on his head, only to miss and hit his back, because he was already crashing into me.

I had brief flashes memories of the festival, of people dancing. There were flickers of people working, and drinking at work parties, laughing with their friends.

I flew back this time, even with Silver’s weight. I crashed straight through two booths, and landed on the ground. The air was knocked out of me. I couldn’t move.

“Meiki!” Akito shouted. “Dammit, Rou! Give me the Fall Driver!”

“I don’t have it here!” Rou shouted back, “And you’re in no shape to fight!”

“I don’t care!”Akito snapped back. “We’re all going to be dead the way this is going!”

“Let’s get them out of here,” Rou said, running over to me. Minotaur blocked his path, and Rou hesitated.

It pissed Akito off. “Damn it, Rou! I’m not going to run, you coward!” Akito shouted back, “This is why you don’t have your own driver!” He got out his Pair Device and slammed it on a delivery bike nearby. Akito swiped the Device, and it played some rock music as the bike transformed into his Harvester. He climbed astride and drove it at Minotaur. He swiped the screen and guns appeared at the front of the bike. He fired them at Minotaur, but they might as well have been spitballs, for all it bothered Minotaur. He stood deliberately in front of the bike, as if daring Akito to crash into him.

Akito jumped off the bike, and did let the bike crash into him. He rolled as he fell. Minotaur simply caught the bike and chucked it into the stage. Akito struggled to get back up. He didn't.

I managed to catch my breath and got to my feet. He was too far away. Minotaur was closer, and my ax was still embedded in the ReMare’s back. I ran towards them. It was useless. There was no way I could make it in time. “Akito!” I shouted.

I could see Winter getting up, knocking aside blots. She wasn’t any closer, and she was swamped with monsters. Rou ran. Good. It was dangerous.

Akito got to his feet finally, wavering like a stiff breeze would knock him over. He put up his fists anyway. I wish he had gone with Rou. He was trying, I know he was, but he was being stupid.

Minotaur seemed to find this hilarious. He snorted with laughter, “Boy, transform or lay down and die. You’re making a fool of yourself.”

“Eat shit, old man,” Akito snarled, wiping blood off his lip.

“Fool!” Minotaur roared, and charged forward.

 

 


	19. Torn

 

Slow. Slow. I was too slow. Minotaur was bearing down on Akito, and I was too slow! I reached for the pink Memoka. There was no way I could make it like this. “Henshin!” I said, swiping the pink Memoka.

Pink light swirled around me, and I wished it would go faster. There wasn't any time. Just as it completed, I heard a battle cry. “AAAAAAAAAH!” A pale blue and yellow blur crashed into Minotaur, grabbing him by one of his horns and wrapping his legs around one of his massive arms. Summer. His attack knocked Minotaur off course and made him unsteady. Minotaur shook his head, trying to dislodge the noisy rider. Summer grabbed my Prism Ax and was able to dislodge it. Minotaur howled, and Summer tossed the ax away.

“Summer…” Akito said, awestruck. I got over to him.

“You alright?” I asked. I picked up the ax and stood guard. It was way too heavy for Sakura. Winter broke free of the ReMares and joined us.

“I’ll live, probably,” Akito said flippantly, “You?”

“I’d rather he didn’t throw me again, but I’m fine.” I dismissed the ax, and sheathed the Memoka. I put the pink Memoka back on my belt. Speed might help, but Sakura was not a defensive powerhouse. Minotaur would tear through it like wet paper. Instead, I decided to try indigo Memoka. I swiped it across the Time Driver. “Henshin!”

“Spooky Scary! Witch!” The belt chimed and played music that sounded like it belonged in an old cheesy horror movie. There definitely was a Theremin. My armor turned a deep indigo, nearly black, with purple trim. My cape had the black silhouette of a witch against a purple background and a yellow moon.

Minotaur crashed into a table, knocking Summer off of him. I sprung forward. Witch felt a lot lighter than Silver. I didn’t think it would be a good idea to take a hit from Minotaur.

“Prism Charge Complete!” The belt announced. I drew it, and it became a little longer, with a short glow at the end. “PRISM WAND! Go, go, go!”

“That… Doesn’t seem very useful,” I said, slashing the Prism Wand in the air. Indigo sparkles trailed after it.

“It’s magic!” Akito shouted, “Say a magic word!”

“Oh!” It was one of the colors that made up Akito’s Fall Driver, and it must be what allowed him to disappear and make the chameleon we had fought a while ago reappear. I waved the wand at Minotaur, and shouted “Alakazam!” A beam of sparking light shot out at Minotaur and he bellowed in pain.

Summer got out of the way as Minotaur stomped around in anger. I threw sparks at Minotaur again, and caught his rage. He turned to me and charged. “Abracadabra!” I shouted, and disappeared, reappearing to the side. Winter swung her sword in front of Minotaur, and he couldn’t stop in time. He crashed into it. The force of the collision spun Winter around, but it also left a massive green burn across Minotaur's abdomen.

Minotaur turned and charged again. This time he crashed directly into Winter, and she went flying. She hit the ground and still skidded back a few feet.

“Winter!” I said, and ran to her. “Please be okay!”

After a moment, she came to. “Ow,” she muttered. “That hurt.”

“I’ll try to keep his attention,” I said. “Be careful.”

“You too, Witch.” I helped her back to her feet, reluctant to leave her. She tapped my shoulder with her fist. “Go. Aki Aki is still vulnerable.”

“Right. Abracadabra,” I said to disappear and reappear in front of Minotaur. “Hey, there ugly,” I said, and wiggled my fingers at him. “Boo!”

He growled and charged me again, but I managed to disappear again. I shot sparks off at him. That got his attention. He turned towards me again. As he started charging, Summer yelled and tackled him again, but Minotaur threw him off, sending him flying into the side of a food truck.

Summer crumpled and fell apart into dust.

“Summer!” Akito yelled, horrified, running towards the food truck.

There was loud screech from the top of a light post. Summer was standing there, his armor shinier than it had been a few moments again. Akito stopped running and laughed, clutching his chest, tears in his eyes.

“Damn you, cicada!” Minotaur shouted, and charged at the light post. Summer jumped down, landing behind Minotaur and slamming him in the head with his nunchaku Minotaur lurched forward, and spun around. He grabbed Summer and tossed him at Akito. Akito caught him. Or rather, Summer crashed into Akito. Akito yelled in pain, and Summer got up quickly.

I winced. That looked like it hurt. Before the Minotaur could charge at them again, I got his attention with some more sparks, and he spun at me. I saw Winter hurry to help Akito up. Summer ran back into the fight, and we kept kiting Minotaur around, trying very hard not to get anyone else hit. But Minotaur didn’t seem to tire.

I appeared next to Minotaur and punched him in the side. At the same time, Summer ran up to Minotaur, hitting him with a low kick.

Suddenly the scene shifted. Everything was tinted sort of brown. It was some sort of work party. They looked like any ordinary business people. The older man at the head of the table looked a little familiar, like I might have seen him on TV at one point. His name escaped me. I didn't recognize anyone else. They laughed and drank. Beneath it all, I recognized the insistent thrum of the hunger.

Summer was there. And I realized that the young salary man was Nisei in disguise. He shimmered with yellow and blue light, but he didn’t seem to notice us as he poured beer into the boss's cup. Was this his memory?

“Are you here?” I asked Summer. None of the party goers seemed to see Summer, and he stood out in his bright seasonal colors.

“Ah?!” Summer stumbled back, and disappeared. The vision disappeared, and I realized Minotaur was punching back. I brought up my arms to block it, and skidded back a few feet. I ran at him and disappeared before getting to him, reappearing behind him and kicking him in the back.

Minotaur spun around. “Cease your foolish trickery!” he bellowed. He wasn't getting slower, he was just getting angry and wilder. And I could tell I was losing energy fast. Using magic was exhausting. Summer also seemed to be slowing down. He wasn’t yelling quite as much as before.

Winter managed to help Akito to the side of the festival square. “You should go, before you get hurt…” Winter told him.

“Too late for that,” Akito said, grinning to disguise a wince.

“Idiot,” came another voice. Rou was back. “Here. If you let him kill you, I won’t ever forgive you.” He thrust Akito’s driver at him.

Akito stared at it for a moment, and then took it. “I’ll keep that in mind, Jiro!” He pulled away from Winter’s support, and placed the Driver against his waist. He stamped the screen. “Henshin!”

“FALL OUT! It’s Harvest Time Go!” His sigil glowed before him, and he stepped through it. A second, more complicated sigil appeared above him, and dropped down over him. “DEEP FALL!” The belt added.

His armor was different. His horns were shorter, and he had a third one in the center, making him look more like his armor was inspired by a beetle than a bull. The eyes were sharper, as if angrier, and he had new markings on his helmet and chest. They were evocative of a leaf’s veins, and they glowed. His cape had a second layer, and both were dagged like the ends were leaves. He posed, and I noticed that his armor was, rather than just being bronze, glittered, sparkling with rainbow colors.

Deep Fall rolled his shoulders and walked out into the fray. I appeared next to him, breathing hard. “Have you softened him up for me?” Deep Fall asked.

“Have at it,” I said, gesturing at Minotaur, leaning with one hand on my knee.

Summer fell back, skidding on his feet, and stopping on the other side of Deep Fall. He screeched, and shifted to a fighting stance.

“Hey, thanks bro,” Deep Fall said, patting Summer’s head roughly before walking forward. Summer snarled at him, but didn’t do anything about it. “Alright, Minotaur! You asked for the tricks to stop. Well, the tricks are over. Don’t regret it!” He summoned his weapon. Instead of glaives, he had two dark indigo swords that had glittering bronze trim.

“What is this? Another one? Well! It doesn’t matter how many puny karate bug men you throw at me! The outcome is predetermined!” Minotaur bellowed, and stomped forward. “I will crush you!”

Deep Fall met him in the center, slashing at him with his swords. He was like a leaf, twirling and dancing out of the way. Minotaur quieted, focusing on fighting, and blocking. At some point, Minotaur summoned a small ax, and was using it to block Deep Fall’s swords from making contact.

Every time Deep Fall spun away or Minotaur thought to get away to go after someone else, one of us attacked and prodded him back into the center with Deep Fall. Winter was standing guard over Rou, who watched with a serious expression.

Minotaur stopped suddenly, his shoulders heaving.

“It’s over,” Deep Fall announced, flourishing his sword.

Summer’s belt chimed and announced “Fugitive Color!” He jumped into the air. His fist glowed, and he dove down and punched Minotaur in the face.

Winter was next. With a massive slash of her sword, her belt chimed, “White out!”

I went next, jumping into the air and kicking him, with a “Vanishing Point!”

Minotaur staggered, but he quickly recovered. Deep Fall was last. His belt called out “Focus Point!” and Deep Fall ran forward and slashed Minotaur with both swords, making a bright glowing x. For a moment, it seemed as if Minotaur would withstand it, but he crumpled and the black ink dissolved into a messy pile of goo. A brown orb of light hovered above it, and Deep Fall picked it up.

He abruptly dropped his transformation, his belt chiming “Fall down! Bye Bye!” before Akito landed on his knees.

I swiped my Time Drive clear and ran forward to him, “Are you alright?” I asked. The others came running too.

Akito laughed.

“What is funny?” Nisei asked looking at me and Meiko to see if we had an explanation.

“He’s an idiot, that’s all,” Rou grumbled, and knelt next to him. Meiko nodded in agreement.

“It’s about time you gave me an upgrade,” Akito said, throwing an arm around Rou and allowing the taller boy to support him.

“I didn’t give you anything,” Rou said, helping him up. “You’re going to give me the driver back so I can see what happened, and then you’re going to get some rest, do you hear me?”

“Yeah, no problem,” Akito said, handing it over. “If you didn’t do it, what happened?”

“When you left us, up on the mountain,” I said, “The origami you left on the altar was glowing.”

Akito didn’t seem to know what to make of that. “Huh.”

“I think it was a gift from the Bright Lady,” I said, helping Rou get Akito to his feet. I was pretty exhausted myself, but I also hadn’t just spent time in the hospital.

“Oh. Huh… Well…” Akito seemed flustered.

“It is part of the reason I didn’t think you had really turned on us,” I said helpfully. It was terribly satisfying to see him stumped for once.

Akito nodded, appreciative. “Oh! Right. That reminds me. Bro, thanks. You really helped us today.” Akito gave Nisei a lazy salute.

“We are not brothers. That was an act,” Nisei said stiffly.

“We are now,” Akito said, unconcerned. “Don’t worry about the details.”

Nisei considered that, and didn’t seem convinced. “It is just to repay you for before. Don’t read into it.” Nisei turned and walked away, raising a hand to say goodbye without looking back at us.

“With the way he’s always shouting, you’d think he’d be more straightforward,” Akito said, watching him go. “It’s like talking to Meiko.”

“Aki Aki, whatever are you talking about?” Meiko said with dangerous sweetness.

“Haha… Nothing, nothing!” Akito said, waving it off.

“Go get some rest before you start bickering,” I said, putting a hand on Meiko’s shoulder. She shot me a glance, and shrugged.

“Come on,” Rou said roughly, turning to bring him back to the bus stop. As soon he was no longer looking at us, Akito slumped and put more of his weight on Rou.

“Talk about a guy that’s not straightforward,” Meiko muttered as she watched them go.

“He’s been trying hard all day today,” I said, and shook my head. “He was worried that you were mad at him still.”

Meiko sighed. “It’s complicated.”

“I know,” I said. “We should head home soon too. I’m exhausted.”

“Not hungry?” Meiko asked, glancing at me.

“I mean, yeah,” I said, not particularly enthused. “We should get some yakisoba before we go.”

Meiko shoved my shoulder. “Don’t start lying to me, Meiki. Rou said you haven’t ate much since yesterday.”

“It’s… I don’t know. I saw one of Sharky’s memories and… She was so _hungry_ ,” I said, stressing the last word. “Stuff… just hasn’t tasted good since then.”

Meiko gave me an odd look.

“I’ve been trying to eat! You saw me eat today!” I objected to her unsaid admonishment.

People were starting to return to the festival, chattering nervously about what they had seen.

“Let’s go home. I’ll make you some rice porridge,” she said, and grabbed my hand and started walking towards the bus stop as well.

“I… okay,” I said, agreeing mostly because she didn’t usually offer to cook.

There were screams again towards the bus stop. “Again?” I groaned, and ran in that direction, not letting go of Meiko’s hand. She ran along with me.

Maneki was perched on top of the bus shelter. Rou was glaring at her, holding up Akito.

“Leave us alone!” I shouted, getting my driver back out. I knew there was no way to win right now. She was too strong, and we were all very tired.

“Really? I came here, thinking to show you something interesting as a reward for taking out that garbage for me, and this is the response I get? I'm hurt,” Maneki said, feigning insult.

“What do you want, Maneki?” Akito asked, sounding bored. He might have just been that tired though.

“Well, if you want me to get right to the point, I will,” Maneki said, and pulled out her gun. It had a different attachment at the end, with three wicked looking prongs. “Bang!” she said, and shot Rou. Akito tried to shove him aside, but Maneki’s aim was true. Green light connected the gun to Rou.

Rou gasped, and rose into the air, unable to move.

“Stop! Stop it!” Meiko yelled.

“No, I don’t think I will,” Maneki gloated. Rou glowed pink. I started to put the driver on my waist and swiped the colorless Memoka across it. A pink orb appeared from Rou’s chest, and Rou fell. Abandoning transforming, I rushed forward to keep him from hitting the ground. The pink orb went to the tip of the gun, and Maneki smiled at it. “Well, well, Foxy. Let’s go,” she said.

Meiko had managed to transform, and was running towards her, but it was too late. Maneki had disappeared into the ground.

“Oh, Rou, wake up,” I said, patting his face gently. “Wake up!” The pink faded from the top of his hair, leaving it all black.

“She took Ki…” Akito said, staring at Rou in disbelief.

“Home. Now,” Winter snapped, and cleared her transformation before helping Akito back up. She handed me my Pair Device. “Akito, give me yours.” She demanded, and between the two devices, we cobbled together transportation. Akito held onto Rou in the side car, and Meiko rode behind me on the bike.

We returned to Momiji Café. “Go to bed, Akito,” Meiko commanded.

“I don’t want to leave him,” Akito muttered. He had fallen asleep with his head resting against Rou’s back.

“He’s going to bed too.” Meiko said. “Everyone is going to get some sleep and we will figure out what to do in the morning.”

Akito nodded weakly. I set up futons for everyone upstairs. Akito grabbed the couch, refusing to leave Rou’s side. I put Rou’s futon next to the couch and laid him down gently. Meiko went to bed, as if sleep was another monster we had to fight. I laid down, watching Akito and Rou. Akito kept his eyes on Rou.

“I said something terrible to the both of them…” Akito whispered. “I called him a coward… He was just looking out for us. I didn’t even apologize.”

“You’ll have a chance to make it right, Akito,” I said.

“She has Ki… I don’t know what she’s going to do,” Akito said. “I can't imagine it's anything good.”

“Me either… We’ll rescue him, Akito,” I said softly.

“Go to bed!” Meiko said sternly.

Akito sighed and fell asleep watching Rou. I drifted in and out. I woke up at one point to find Sharky curled up next to me like a cat. It was comforting to have her there. I hoped that meant she had forgiven me, and knew that I wasn’t angry at her.

In the morning, I was woken by Rou frantically pacing around the room. Akito was still dead asleep, and Meiko was absent, although I could hear rattling downstairs.

“Rou… You’re awake,” I said, sitting up.

“Where is he? Why isn’t he here?” Rou demanded, stopping his pacing.

“Ki… He… Maneki took him somehow… She had a weird gun,” I said it as gently as I could. “I’m so sorry. We couldn’t stop her.”

“No!” he objected, pacing again. “He tried so hard! He didn’t want to be a ReMare. What will I do? I can’t… I can’t do the things he could!” He pulled at his hair.

I stood up and went over to him, and held onto his shoulders. “Calm down. We’ll get him back.”

“You don’t understand!” Rou said, shrugging me off so he could keep pacing.

“No, I can’t even imagine,” I said softly. “He’s been part of you for so long…”

“It’s more than that!” Rou shouted. Akito stirred and Rou went quiet. He took a deep breath and continued with a more even tone. “I can’t make Memokas. All the computer stuff. That’s him. All I can do is make origami. I can’t fight!” his voice broke, and he dashed aside tears, “I’m so weak without him. I’ll get sick again. I can’t do this, I can’t! I need him!”

“If you get sick, then I will help you,” Akito said softly. He sat up slowly. “It’s why I became a doctor after all.”

“You’re not even a doctor anymore!” Rou snapped back. “You quit when Togo died, and you put us all in danger when you thought he was back. What kind of doctor does that?!”

Akito looked at him evenly, “You’re upset, and I deserve that.” He stood up and walked to the stairwell door. “I’m sorry.” He slammed it behind himself, and I could his heavy footsteps as he descended the stairs.

“What the heck is he mad for?!” Rou said, pounding his fist on the doorway.

“Well, beside the fact that you just threw all of his mistakes in his face? He’s scared and worried about you. He tried to protect you, even though he was pretty out of it after the fight,” I said, ticking off reasons on my fingers, “Oh, and he refused to let you out of his sight last night, even though he really should have slept in a proper bed. He wanted to apologize for the shitty things he said to you.”

Rou pulled at his shirt, and muttered, “Damn it.”

“This whole situation is messed up, Rou. Everyone is on edge,” I said.

He was quiet for a long moment, fidgeting with his clothes. “He’s right, though. I’m an ass, and he’s right.”

“That’s probably true in reverse as well,” I said, trying to lighten the mood a little.

He rolled his eyes at me. “Go eat,” he said, gesturing dismissively towards the elevator.

“Come with me,” I countered. I didn’t want to eat, but I’d do it if it would help patch things over. He didn’t answer right away. I stared him down.

“Fine,” Rou said. We took the elevator down together, standing in the small space quietly. He fidgeted constantly.

The kitchen was a mess.

“You could have just asked!” Akito grumbled as he started to put things right, “I have a system!”

“I wasn’t about to wake you up, Aki Aki. I just wanted to make some porridge and tea,” Meiko grumbled, helping him put pans back. There was a pot of rice porridge on the stove, and a few cups of tea on a tray. It was the only part that looked put together. “Go sit down. I’ll put things back where they belong.” She chased him away from the mess.

“Fine, but I'm staying here,” Akito said, and perched on a stool, watching Meiko like a hawk.

Rou went over to Akito, and glared at him. Akito sat up straighter and met his gaze. “I’m sorry!” Rou said suddenly, and bowed sharply.

Akito looked like he was expecting to argue with him further. When it turned out to be an apology, he took a deep breath and let it go. “Me too. Forgive me for not bowing, my back is still a mess.”

“Will you listen and get some rest?” Rou asked.

“Probably not. I thought I’d try and figure out what Maneki is going to do next, see if we can get our friend back,” Akito said, sounding relaxed again.

“We do need to be prepared next time,” Meiko said softly, stirring the pot of rice porridge. “Four of us were barely enough to beat Minotaur, and Tigra is smart… And we have no idea if Summer will keep helping us.”

“I want to fight,” Rou said quietly. “I want to beat her and rescue Ki.”

“We can do it,” I said comfortingly. “We’ll find a way.”

“No. I want to do it. It should be something I do.” Rou shook his head, his jaw set stubbornly.

“Thought you said you can’t make Memokas and stuff?” Akito asked, although he seemed keenly interested.

Rou wilted. “I can’t... I don’t actually know how. That was Ki…” Gloom rolled over him. He picked at the handle on the fridge. “It was like sitting in on a class in Chinese. I don’t understand it at all.”

“I understood some,” Meiko said, serving up four bowls of the porridge.

“What?” Rou asked, snapping to attention.

“I helped you make Winter, remember?” Meiko said, passing out the bowls and tea. “We could make Spring.”

“That’s right…” Rou said, eyes widening in wonder.

“Honestly, I could probably figure out the Memokas too. Do you know how to do any of it?” She asked.

“I mean, I remember doing it of course, but I don’t really understand the whys or how things need to be calibrated and stuff…” Rou trailed off.

“If you sit in on enough classes, you’ll start to understand eventually, right?” I said, “And Meiko is really good at that sort of thing. Computers or whatever.” I shrugged. “It wouldn’t hurt to try.”

“Then let’s do it!” Rou said, standing up.

“Sit down and eat first,” Meiko said. She clapped her hands together to say thanks for the food and started eating. Rou reluctantly sat down and ate quickly. “Meiki, you too.”

I did as she asked. I took a bite, and then another. It was bland, but it was hot and easy to eat. I kept eating until it was gone. “More please!” I said in unison with Akito, holding out the bowl for more at the same time.

Meiko smiled and gave us both a heaping helping. I wasn’t really hungry, but it was worth it to see her smile.

Rou finished eating, quickly. “I’m going to get to work. Akito, I’m counting on you.”

“Yeah. I got it,” Akito said with a mouthful of food.

Meiko wrinkled her nose at him and finished her own bowl. She stood up and took her dish to the sink. “I’ll go with you,” Meiko said. The two of them disappeared upstairs and I stopped eating.

“Still not actually hungry?” Akito asked, taking another bite.

I gave him a look. “I just ate a bowl and a half of rice porridge.”

“That’s not actually answering the question,” Akito asked, raising his eyebrows.

“I’m full now,” I said. I was, actually. I felt warm and comfortable.

“Still, it’s not like your usual appetite,”Akito said, sounding more like a doctor than he usually did. He finished his porridge and grabbed a plate of leftover pizza from the fridge to eat. “Want some?”

I sighed. “Yes! I do! But it’s just going to taste like cardboard, so what’s the point?” I leaned back against the counter. A terrible thought occurred to me. “I wonder if she was right...”

“Who? Meiko? I’m going to go with probably,” Akito said, and took a bite of cold pizza.

“No. Asuka.”

Akito gave me an incredulous look, and put his hand on my forehead, “No fever? Did you hit your head? Did one of the blots touch you?”

I swatted his hand away. “No, I’m fine.”

“Then why in the world do you think she’s right about anything?” Akito asked.

“Because…” I said, not really sure I wanted to put it into the words. “Tell me, do you see visions of memories the ReMares have eaten or… or even their own memories? When we fight?”

“No. I thought Rou said that was your trick, since you are the Bright Lady’s champion,” Akito said. I could tell he was trying to connect the dots.

“I think Nisei might,” I said quietly. “We both fell into a memory when we hit Minotaur.”

“So what?” Akito asked, “He’s part ReMare. That’s what they eat.”

“Asuka said something about me becoming a ReMare,” I said.

“That’s dumb. You’re not becoming a ReMare,” he said shortly.

“No, but… How many Memokas do I have now? Seven? That power goes into me and I wonder if it doesn’t change things… If I might become more spirit like…” I said, toying with my spoon.

Akito stared at me for a long moment. “I don’t know, Meiki,” he said carefully. “You can try talking to Sharky. You said it started when you saw her memories. It might help.”

“I’m serious, Akito,” I said, annoyed that he was trying to deflect my concern to a different problem.

“I know, I know!” Akito shook his head. “If you are turning into a spirit or whatever, I don’t know if there’s anything we can do about it. You’ll have to figure out how to ask the Bright Lady. We fight for her, but we’re not her chosen.”

“Yeah. You’re right,” I said, and stood up to stretch. “So. What are you going to do to figure out our cat problem?”

“I figured I’d call her and see if she has any demands,” Akito said, waving the old flip phone, before setting it on the table.

“Is… Is that a good idea?” I asked, surprised he was going to do something that straight forward.

“Probably not. But it’s the best lead we have,” Akito said. “She’s made it clear we’re on borrowed time anyway. And if it has a chance to be productive, I’ll take it.”

“Now?” I asked. I noticed Sharky was slinking around near the doorway. I watched her, wondering if she was going to come in on her own, or if I’d have to ask her to.

“Yeah, I guess so,” Akito said. He took a deep breath and dialed a number on the phone. He put a finger up to his lips and put it on speaker phone. I nodded to him and listened to it ring. Sharky still wasn’t coming in. I waved my hand at her to come in, and smiled. She startled, and then zipped in, swimming in the air around me. I patted her head, and she nibbled on my fingers.

Maneki picked up the phone, “Well, look who is calling. Akito. I didn’t expect to hear from you again, my pet.”

“Give Ki back,” Akito said shortly.

“Oh, that? I’m afraid I can’t,” Maneki purred, “Would you like to talk to him?”

Akito bit his lip and glanced over to me. I frowned and pointed up to the ceiling, and mouthed the word “Rou?”

Akito thought about it and shook his head. “No time,” he mouthed.

I frowned, and called his cellphone, stepping into Akito’s room. “Rou, get down here now.” I said quietly when he answered. I hung up and texted him the reason as I walked back to the kitchen.

“Well, well. It sure is taking you a long time to decide, isn’t it? Don’t be silly. Of course you do! You are friends!” Maneki decided, “Foxy, darling, say hi to your friends.”

“Is Rou okay?” A gentle voice said over the phone.

“Yeah. Ki, we’ll get you back. I promise,” Akito said, his voice wavering with emotion.

The elevator dinged and Rou stumbled out, “What is it?!” he demanded.

“Rou?” Ki asked, sounding briefly hopeful.

“Ki!” Rou shouted, rushing forward and picking up the phone as if he could reach in and drag the fox spirit through the speaker. “Are you alright?”

“I… If you see me… Please be careful. I don’t know if I can…” Ki said, struggling with what to say.

“He’s so hungry,” Maneki said, as if praising a dog for being a good puppy. “Such a strong spirit. It’s been a long time since someone this powerful became a ReMare. I’m impressed! I always thought you were weak, possessing a useless human, but put a blot on you and you're the strongest monochrome I've ever seen. Isn't it such a step up, Foxy?”

Ki was silent.

Rou tightened his grip on the phone. I thought it would snap the entire phone in half. “I will save you, Ki! I will,” Rou said. “Meiko is helping me like before. We won’t be helpless.”

“…Don’t die,” Ki said at length. Rou's hands went limp, barely supporting the phone.

Maneki laughed, and took the phone back, “Did you hear that? Don’t die! Oh, that’s rich. I can’t wait for you to meet him, it’ll be so much fun.”

“Then let’s meet him,” Akito said, pulling the phone gently out of Rou’s hand. “Name a time and a place.”

“Ah, ah, ah,” she scolded, sounding amused. “I’m afraid it won’t be that easy. Foxy here has to get used to being a ReMare! When it’s time to meet, I will let you know! I’m sure it will be a touching reunion. Now, good bye, my darlings!” The phone call went dead.

We were silent. Rou sank to the ground, hugging his knees. Akito knelt next to him and hugged him. “They turned him into a monster,” Rou said, his voice shaking.

“We will get him back,” I said, softly, kneeling next to him and joined in the hug. “Ki is smart. He knows we’re trying to help him.”

 


	20. Satisfaction

The nightmares came back.

Rou fell to pieces. I desperately tried to put the pieces back, but they fragmented further at my touch, until they were too small to recognize. A fox's laughter echoed in the distance.

A beast loomed over a scared boy. Akito ran into danger. I tried to stop him. I grabbed his hand but he slipped through my fingers. Just as the beast slashed Akito across the chest, the boy grinned, and wore Togo's face, and ripped into Akito's flesh from behind.

Meiko, lovely sweet Meiko, was tearing things apart in a wild rage. I tried to stop her. Tried to hold her until she calmed. She fought me. She was a tempest and I couldn't soothe her.

Nisei stood at a crossroad. The paths had cliffs on either side. Each time he took a step, gusts of wind pushed him towards a different path. It surprised me that I dreamed of him. I still tried to help, but all I did was add another gust of wind buffeting him.

When my alarm rang, I was awake. I felt like mud, but my eyes were open, staring at the collage of posters and colorful fabric pinned to my ceiling. I could hear Arachne skittering on my side table. She had stayed with me since the whole Asuka fiasco.

"Arachne, hit the snooze button for me," I said, not able to will myself into moving. I heard her skitter across my bedside table, and for a brief moment, my phone was silent. And then it started playing Killer Queen and vibrating noisily. Without looking at it, I knew it was my girlfriend. I had all of my friends ring tones set to different songs. Arachne backed up as if offended, and then suddenly pushed the phone off of the table. It clattered to the floor. "Hey!" I said, throwing off blankets and sitting up. I scooped up my phone, and answered it. "Hi, Meiko," I said cheerfully, despite being tired.

"Good morning. Don't forget you have to go to work. I'm not there to travel with you," Meiko said, her soft voice scratchy from lack of sleep.

"Right," I said, half glad she had called. I might have continued lying there like a lump otherwise. I heard Rou shouting in the background. "Are things okay over there?" I asked.

"We've made little progress," Meiko answered dryly. "I think I'm going to call in today, if that's alright with you."

"It's fine. Rou needs you," I said. The words came reluctantly. It wasn't like I was jealous, exactly. My dreams weighed heavily on my mind. I wanted to protect them, but it wasn't like I could do anything when there wasn't anything to fight. All I would do was get in the way.

"Are you sure?"

Selfish. I shook my head, trying to dismiss that taunt. "Yeah. I mean, I skipped a couple of days too and made you do the show by yourself too. It's my turn to cover for you," I said, trying to sound like it didn't bother me at all.

"Okay.” It sounded like she didn't entirely believe me. She knew me too well. After a pause she said, “Eat breakfast.”

"Yes, Meiko." I sighed.

"I'm serious."

"I know." It wasn't like I liked not enjoying food. Food was one of my favorite things.

I heard her talking away from the phone, muffled by her hand. She uncovered the phone and said, "Have a good day, okay?"

"You too. Good luck. Get some rest if you can. You got knocked around pretty good yesterday, too," I said. "We're no good to Ki if we end up getting hurt because we're not taking care of ourselves."

"Exactly. Take your own advice, Meiki," Meiko said, before saying goodbye and hanging up.

I sighed and stared at my phone. That was entirely different. It didn't even feel like I really needed the food. I got out of bed, properly awake now, and started getting ready for my day. After a long, hot shower, I braided up my hair as coffee brewed. There was a rhythmic knock at the door and Akito let himself in. He looked like something a dog had rolled in. His eyes were dark, and his face looked pale.

"Good morning!" he said cheerfully before putting a box down on the kitchen table and slumping into a chair.

"I see you're still moving like an old man," I said.

"I'm shocked. Someone who makes their living talking has forgotten her greetings," Akito grumbled, sounding like an elementary school principal lecturing children for not saying hello properly to neighbors as they walked to school. "Especially for someone who brought you breakfast."

"Sorry. Good morning, Aki," I said more pleasantly, although it must have sounded patronizing because a smirk flickered across Aki's expression. "I see they put you on babysitting duty. I was going to eat."

"It's equal parts that and getting me out of their hair," Aki said, brushing his own hair away from his face with a hand. "Apparently if I'm going to fuss instead of rest, I should fuss at you. Unless I want Rou to stuff me in a garbage can."

"I could see him doing that," I said, coming to the kitchen table. Rou could be a bit short tempered even in a good mood, and losing Ki was a major blow. "What did you bring me?"

"Rice balls. Nothing fancy," Aki said, flipping the lid of the box open. There was a row of five good sized rice balls, each wrapped in seaweed cut to look like Year's face.

“Not fancy, huh?” I asked, showing him the face. “This is cute.”

“Well, the food itself isn't fancy. But it didn't feel right just making rice balls.” Aki said, shrugging. “I figured simple was probably better for you right now."

"Yeah, sorry," I said. I took one and took a bite. Eating felt distressingly mechanical, like I was a robot only going through the motions of chewing.

“I wish we knew what was going on,” Aki said quietly.

"No kidding," I said. I shoved another rice ball in my mouth. I felt bad that Aki's adorable rice balls tasted like clay. "Do you mind if I take the rest for lunch?" I hoped someone at work might help me eat them, but chances were someone from the Mei Brigade would call me at work and scold me if I didn't eat them myself.

"Yeah, go ahead," Aki said, his tired eyes watching me with concern. "Are you leaving already?"

"Soon, yeah. You should rest here," I said, annoyed that a walking garbage fire was that concerned about me. I was fine. Mostly. Probably.

"Thanks," he said, slumping against his chair like an old jack-o-lantern.

That took me aback. It wasn't like I had expected for him to decline, but to give in so quickly without brushing it off was alarming. "That bad, huh?"

"Mm..." Aki said in a noncommittal way, and continued dryly, “Despite appearances to the contrary, I am a doctor and I am aware that fighting a god of ink and light right out of the hospital is a terrible idea.”

“Well, we did win,” I said, which made him flash me a wry smile. “Two High ReMares down, and your noisy brother is sort of on our side. We're getting better.” At least in some ways. We did lose Ki. And his clever mind was teamed up with Maneki's deviousness. And there was still Shika, who had ripped off my transformation like it was nothing. The same Shika who had scattered the Mei Brigade, killing Togo. And there was something that even Maneki feared and respected.

But Aki knew that, so I said nothing, trying to push away the images that had haunted my dreams.

"We are making progress, I guess," Akito said, propping up his head with his hand.

I had one more weapon in my attempts to cheer him up. I grinned, and crossed my arms, I shifted into my pose, and said, "We're living in color!"

"Yeah, yeah. Go to work, alright?" he said, grinning back and waving me away dismissively.

I decided that would have to do. I finished getting ready and ruffled his hair affectionately. "Behave, okay? The doctor said you should rest and not get into any fights. You should listen to him."

“He is a very handsome and cool doctor, so I suppose I have to,” Aki said, “Besides, Rou has my driver again, so yeah, not a chance. Fall's not going to come sweeping in to rescue you again, okay? Be careful."

"You keep saying that, but your track record is very good on that one, magician," I said, grinning at him before ducking out the door. It seemed like all of the times he appeared to save me was when he really shouldn't be able to.

At the office I was greeted with the usual chorus of good mornings. "Is Meiko okay?" Nawata-san asked immediately.

"She'll be alright," I said, brushing it off. I don't know what she told them about not coming in, so I didn't want to say she was sick if she had said something else.

"Meiki! I'm going to have Nisei-kun fill in for Meiko. Let the boy get a little air time." Okuda-san said as she hurried across the room.

I groaned internally but said "Yes, ma'am." I was actually surprised that he was still bothering to show up for work. I had thought that Maneki had demanded he work here as a plant, but ties between them had to be at very least tenuous, if not completely severed after he helped us.

I shuffled around the office, getting ready, before heading to the booth. I'd have to take care of all the sound board today. It wasn't may favorite part of the job, and usually Meiko did most of it, but I could work it just fine, thank you. I sat down in her chair and got my notes in order.

Nisei hesitated at the door before bowing sharply. "Excuse my intrusion!" he announced, remaining bowed.

"Yeah, come on in, Nisei-kun. You can relax," I said, amused. He was more awkwardly formal and stilted than usual. It wasn't long ago that we had been enemies. But he had fought hard against Minotaur with us, and Aki had insisted they were brothers whether Nisei was Nisei or Togo. He was part of our weird little family, even if he was a prickly shouty punk who wasn't sure where he really stood.

He raised his head and walked over to the open chair. "Thank you for taking care of me," he said, and sat down.

"We start in five. Here are your notes. Just follow my lead, alright?" I said. He nodded, and I started getting the equipment ready.

I gave him a quick count down before I turned everything on, "Good Morning, Oara! I'm your host, Kimura Mei, and today Meiko is absent, so filling in is F.M. 98.5 Mei Brigade's very own intern. Nisei-kun, introduce yourself, would you?"

He stiffened up in his chair and gave a sharp bow despite radio not being a visual medium. "I'm Meian Nisei! Nice to meet you!"

"What school do you go to, Nisei-kun?" I asked, needling him for not giving a more complete answer.

He hesitated and said, "I go to Oara University. I'm a first year student. I was a ronin for a few years before starting school, but now I'm majoring in communications!"

"Is that so? I went there too, with the same major. Are you enjoying it?" I was actually surprised he had an answer ready for that question. It seemed odd that a ReMare would pretend to live a human life.

"Yes, I am," Nisei said simply.

It didn't seem likely that he was going to supply more information, so I decided to move on. "Alright, next up is the weather! It's still pretty hot in Oara. Today we have a high of thirty degrees Celsius, with a low of twenty eight. It's supposed to be sunny all day, with clouds rolling in tomorrow morning."

Nisei got through the traffic and community calendar without incident. If it sounded dry, well, there wasn't much helping it with him. He did a good enough job for his first time though. The only stumbling block came when we reported about the festival.

"The festival was good, lots of wonderful food and beautiful fireworks," Nisei said, reading off of his notes.

"There was a ReMare attack, however," I added. We had defeated Minotaur. People would remember him being there.

"Yes," Nisei said shortly.

"There was a little damage to the stalls, but Year, Winter, Fall, and Summer managed to defeat an incredibly strong ReMare named Minotaur," I said. "The festival was able to continue as usual, with the planned fireworks and dancing."

Nisei was quiet, staring at me.

"Please stay safe, Oara. These Kamen Riders are doing their best to protect your precious memories," I said.

"No," Nisei said suddenly.

"Excuse me?" I asked.

"Summer isn't there to protect everyone." Nisei said, crossing his arms.

"He fought Minotaur bravely, protecting Fall's memories. I saw it myself. It was cool," I said, and before he could argue more, I continued, "It's time for Oara Morning Driiive!" I switched to a lineup of music. “What the heck are you doing?”

“I am not your friend,” he said, glaring at me.

“You fought with us. We want to protect you too,” I said.

“It’s none of your business what I do. I don't have to join you,” Nisei said.

“No, you don’t,” I said, “But you also don’t need to be difficult.”

‘I am not being difficult,” Nisei said. “Do not talk about Summer as if I am part of your group.

“Fine,” I said, annoyed. If he was being stubborn, I certainly wasn’t going to argue with him about it on air. “We’ll talk about something else.”

“Good,” Nisei said. And when the show went back up, that’s what we did. It was awkward and tense, but somehow we made it till my lunch break without totally falling apart.

“Next up, we have Lunch Rush Music Hour! This has been F.M. 98.5 Mei Brigade!” I said, and turned off our microphones. “Thanks for your hard work,” I said to Nisei. “Do you want to go get lunch?” I asked. I didn’t particularly want to eat, but I did want to see if I could convince him to be a little more cooperative.

“I have better things to do with my break than eat human garbage,” Nisei said, before standing up, bowing severely and walking off. I stared after him. It was the rudest he’d been to me without actually just screaming in my face, like he did when he was transformed.

Whatever. I went to eat quickly in the staff room.

“Not going out today?” Oscar asked, coming in to rinse out his coffee cup.

“Not to eat, anyway. I’ve got rice balls today. I might leave to stretch my legs. Check to make sure there aren’t any ReMares causing trouble. You know,” I said, biting into a rice ball. It was about like biting into packing peanuts, despite knowing it should at least be a little sour, with the soft pickled plum in the middle.

“You usually eat something heartier than that. Are you trying to diet or something?” Oscar asked, putting his cup to dry.

“No?” I said, baffled that he’d even ask.

“Oh, well… I see. I could give you tips if that's what you wanted. Eating nothing but rice isn't great for a diet,” Oscar said, turning his nose up. If I let him, he'd go on a rant contrasting the benefits of French and Japanese food.

I shoved the last rice ball in my mouth and stood up. I didn’t want to have that conversation. Another time, I'd be happy to argue with him about it, but I couldn't stomach it now. “I gotta go. See ya!”

“Wait up! I need to go shopping too,” Oscar said, dashing off to get his shoes. I sighed. If I had wanted people picking at the way I was eating, I would have went back to the lab, where their concern was from a place of love, rather than just nosiness. And I didn’t particularly want to worry them either, especially when they were busy trying to get Spring made so Rou could fight.

“Oh! I almost forgot. I’ve actually got to check up on a friend. Sorry, another time, alright?” I said, getting ready and escaping the building. He followed me out, still heading to go shopping. I thought to head towards Kamitori, to see Rou and Meiko, but then I spotted Reina across the street, and waved at her. I crossed over at the light.

“Hey Reina-chan! How’s it going?” I asked cheerfully.

“Hello,” she said reluctantly. She glanced across the street. “What’s he doing?”

Oscar had stopped on the sidewalk when he had noticed Reina. He took a few hesitant steps back, before turning away and hurrying off.

“Shopping. That sure didn’t look suspicious at all,” I said, still annoyed with him. “I talked with him by the way. It seemed like he didn’t remember you, but…” I gestured vaguely in the direction he had walked off in. I was disappointed. Oscar could get on my nerves sometimes, and I suspected some of that was cultural differences, but I worked with him and couldn't help wanting to believe he was a decent person. Not the type of person who’d dump a girl at the altar and talk about her rudely behind her back.

“It’s fine,” Reina said. “There’s someone else I like now.” She glanced around, as if expecting that person to show up. “It’s why I still hang out around here.”

“Are they cute?” I asked, glad that she was moving out of the desperate pain that drove her to cooperate with a ReMare.

“No… They’re cool,” she said, trailing off. “Listen, you know them, don’t you?”

“Who?” I asked. “I mean, maybe? I know a lot of people. It is part of the whole radio hosting job, you know? You gotta talk to folk.”

Reina shook her head. “No, because you’re Year,” she said.

“Oh. Oooooh!” I said, light bulbs going off in my head. She had been impressed with Meiko when we had rescued her from the ReMare. “Do you mean Winter?” I asked.

“Yes. Who is Winter in real life?” she demanded.

“Real life? Winter is real,” I said confused. Being Year was a part of my real life.

“I mean when not fighting weird monsters,” Reina said impatiently.

“Oh. It’s not really my place to say,” I said, trailing off. “But um. She’s sort of spoken for.” Meiko had said she was fine with sharing me with Akito and Rou, because she was fond of them as well, but I sincerely doubt she had any thought to opening our relationship beyond that. Especially not with a stranger. And likely not for herself either. She wasn't that outgoing.

Reina sighed. “Figures. By you?”

“Yeah,” I said, ducking my head apologetically. I wasn’t actually sorry. Meiko is the best, and I’m still feeling floaty over the fact that she likes me. It just felt like I kept getting in Reina’s way unintentionally, when I really hoped she could be happy.

Reina stared off into the distance for a long moment. She sighed again and nodded, as if coming to a decision. “Fine. You owe me an ice cream.”

“What? Alright?” I said, shrugging, wishing I could say that it sounded good. “I’m going to Kamitori.” I gestured at the bus stop. She nodded primly, and we waited quietly for the bus. At length I said, “You remind me of her, a little.”

“Oh?” Reina said, glancing at me.

I nodded. “You are both very cool and elegant in your own ways.”

Reina frowned, “I don't need your pity,” she said but her cheeks flushed a little.

“Of course not,” I agreed. “But it's true.”

The bus took us to Kamitori, which was bustling, full of people getting lunch and shopping. In the distance I heard Puffy-kun's theme song, and guessed that the weird smokestack mascot was having a live performance somewhere down the arcade.

I couldn’t help but look at the Momiji Café. I wanted to check on Rou and Meiko before I went back to work. What surprised me, though, was that the café was busy. There was actually a few people waiting outside to go in. Odd, considering I had left the owner of the café at my apartment with instructions to get some rest.

Or not so odd, considering it was Akito and he had been doing nothing but pushing himself since he had returned to the Mei Brigade.

“They have good ice cream,” Reina said, noticing my interest, “And the owner is cute, even if he is really short.”

“I know,” I said, “he’s a friend of mine, actually.”

She gave me a suspicious look.

“Not Winter,” I said, guessing what she meant. “Sorry. We did an interview together at the Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital, and we actually went to high school together, although those memories are kinda… Y’know.” I moved my hand to look like something blowing away in the wind.

“You have memories missing too?” Reina asked.

“Seems like it,” I agreed. “It kind of sucks.”

“I thought you were immune or whatever.” Reina frowned.

“Only in the armor, unfortunately. And… sometimes we lose,” I said reluctantly. “And it’s terrible.”

She nodded, staring at the café. The waiting couple were allowed in, and a large group left, chatting and laughing as they walked. “Let’s go in,” she said without looking at me, and led the way. I followed her. It seemed like a different place with so many people in it. Before it had felt more like a fancy kitchen in a close friend’s house than an actual restaurant. There was no sign of Rou or Meiko, but I figured they must be upstairs in the lab.

Akito, however, was sitting in a comfortable chair at the register, greeting people as they came in. A cute girl in an apron flitted from table to table, taking orders and filling drinks.

“What heavenly light breaks through yonder door?” Akito asked shading his eyes as if our presence was blinding. “Is that you, Meiki-chan? What a surprise! And who is this visage of beauty?”

“This is Reina,” I said, catching his gaze. Dawning awareness flickered across his face. He had heard about me complaining about her glaring at me whenever I went past her on the street. “I promised to buy her ice cream. Reina, this is Meiaki Akito.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Reina-san!” Akito said, smiling.

“The pleasure is mine,” Reina said, bowing. “I like your café.”

“Oh! Such sweet words from such sweet lips. I am unworthy!” Akito said. Reina frowned, blushing a little.

“I didn’t know you had this many employees, Aki,” I said, cutting into his flirting.

He had the dignity to look affronted, “Despite appearances to the contrary,” he said, echoing what he had said earlier about being a doctor, “this is a popular café, and I'm actually a pretty good chef,” Akito said dryly. “And before you start in on me, I am taking it easy. Go take a seat and Sona-chan will be with you in a moment.”

“Alright, Alright,” I said. Reina had already claimed a table near the wall. She was scowling, like a cat splashed with water. I joined her. “Sorry, he’s a bit much sometimes.”

“I hate it when guys say stuff like that when they don’t mean it,” Reina grumbled. “It’s embarrassing.”

“The embarrassing thing is that he totally means it,” I said, rolling my eyes. She frowned, clearly not believing me. “So… What are you going to do?”

“Order some ice cream,” Reina said, looking at the menu.

“That’s not what I meant,” I said.

“It’s all you’re getting,” Reina said. Sona came over and took Reina’s order. I ordered a small dish of ice cream as well, when Akito caught my gaze from across the restaurant. “It doesn’t matter, does it? It sucks right now, but I’ll move on.”

“That’s good,” I started to say, when the door opened and Oscar walked in. Reina watched him carefully as Akito also flirted with him before directing him to sit down. Oscar looked confused, but he didn’t seem to notice us as he sat down and started looking at his menu.

“I changed my mind. I’m going to talk to him,” Reina said, standing up abruptly.

“Are you sure?” I asked, my voice hushed.

She ignored me and walked over to him and sat down at his table. “Oscar,” she said sternly.

“Mademoiselle?” He startled, looking at her like she had pointed a weapon at him. “Excuse me, are you a fan?”

“Not lately,” Reina said, crossing her arms. “You stood me up.”

“I’m terribly sorry?” Oscar said, baffled. “I am trying to order some lunch, could you excuse me?” He tried to hide behind his menu.

I frowned. It had seemed suspicious when he had deliberately avoided us when I went over to Reina, but he did seem like he really didn’t know her.

“We were engaged to be married, Oscar. And you stood me up to badmouth me in the park with some tart!” Reina said, pushing his menu down on the table. The restaurant went quiet, as people started to awkwardly watch the brewing argument. “You know who I am, don’t you?”

“I’m afraid I don’t know about that… I have seen you around the radio station. Lately whenever you see me, you either start crying or glare at me,” Oscar said, shifting uncomfortably in his seat.

“You’re lying!” Reina shouted. “You always get squirmy when you lie!”

“I most certainly am not!” Oscar said, his face turning red.

“I’m gonna throw your friends out, Meiki,” Aki said, sidling up next to me, looking amused.

“I’m so sorry,” I said, standing up. “I’ll see if I can-“

I was interrupted by an angry scream from outside the store. Hushed whispers fell over the store as people tried to figure out what was going on. I met Akito's gaze. “Summer,” I said. He glanced towards the back of the restaurant, and I could read his thoughts on his face. He wanted to go upstairs and get his driver back from Rou. “Stay. They heard it too,” I reminded him. “I'll call Winter if I need backup. Keep your restaurant from exploding.”

Akito struggled for a moment, and then nodded. “Go. I’ll see if I can fix things here.”

“Thanks,” I said, and half ran for the door, spurring further murmurs from the customers.

As I opened the door, I heard Akito say, “Alright, darlings, what seems to be the problem here?”

“Okay, Nisei, where are you?” I muttered.

“AAAAAAAGGH!”

“Thanks,” I said under my breath and ran towards that end of Kamitori. I had to slow to a walk quickly though, to slip through the throngs of people who were dazed and milling around. In the center was a low stage, with Puffy-kun sitting down staring off into space. I heard another yell down an alleyway, and I chased after it.

I crashed into Summer as I crossed another narrow path. He hissed at me, and shoved me aside, before tackling a ReMare with equine features and brown markings. The ReMare struggled and got away, with Summer racing after it.

“Well then,” I said, and swiped my indigo Memoka across the Time Driver.

“Spooky, Scary! Witch!” the driver announced, playing a creepy tune, with indigo light pouring over me, leaving my Witch armor behind. Almost immediately, the Prism charge was complete, and I drew the Prism wand.

“Alakazam!” I said, waving the wand sharply. I disappeared and reappeared in front of the horse ReMare. “Stop right there!” I said. It backpedaled instinctively, but on the other end of the alley was Summer, snarling and poised to tackle it again. The horse ReMare hesitated, not sure which was worse.

“This is shitty,” the horse ReMare said, sighing. “Dang it, this is the worst!”

“Come quietly, and it doesn’t have to be,” I said softly. “What’s your name?” I asked, trying to calm the ReMare down.

“It’s not like I’m sticking around for you to use it. See you never!” The horse snorted, sinking into the Under.

Summer screamed his objection, and tackled me. I ducked under his arm, spinning out of his grasp. He caught my cape and pulled hard. I staggered back and he managed to get an arm around my neck. I tried to elbow him in the chest, but he ignored it.

“Summer, we’re busy. What in the world are you doing attacking Witch?” Winter was leaning up against the alley wall in front of me.

Summer snarled at her and tightened his grip, moving back a few steps. I stumbled along.

“It’s fine. He’s on his way too, and I’m sure he’d love to have a chat with you about putting our friend in a choke hold,” Winter said mildly, and Summer looked around wildly.

I took that moment to choke out the word “Alakazam,” and my magic poofed me over to Winter.

She punched my shoulder lightly. “You alright?” she asked.

“Yeah,” I said, catching my breath, hands on my knees, “We were chasing a ReMare. It got away.”

“Summer fades. Good bye!” Summer’s belt chimed, and his armor disappeared. Nisei stood there looking like someone had put sand in his underpants.

“You got in the way!” Nisei snapped. “I am hungry and you let Charlie get away!”

“You were going to eat it?” I asked, straightening up.

“What else am I supposed to do?” he said, throwing his hands up in the air. “I can’t just eat human memories anymore, I’ve got to eat something!”

“Have you tried… and this may sound unconventional, but bear with me. People can eat…. Food,” Winter said, crossing her arms. I stifled a chuckle.

“Human food? No! It’s garbage!” Nisei's nose wrinkled like she had suggested he should eat a turd covered in mayonnaise.

Which was about how I felt about eating at the moment. I made a fist as if I could punch that thought away. “Even now, with a human body?” I asked, because I had to. “Rou could eat just fine, when Ki was with him.”

“Why would I even try it?” Nisei grumbled. “Now excuse me, I’ve got to see if I can still find that idiot.”

“Wait, let me help,” I said, “I don’t want a ReMare running around here where there’s so many people.”

“I don’t want your help. You’ll keep the light for yourself,” Nisei snapped, and turned to walk away.

“Hey! Stop!” I said, jogging after him. He glanced back at me sharply and stomped a foot. A black pit opened up in front of him and he hopped in. The hole disappeared behind him. I stared after him, surprised he was willing to risk going into the Under after helping us.

“Let’s go back to the café,” Meiko had dropped her transformation, and walked up next to me. “There's nothing we can do with them in the Under.”

I nodded and swiped my hand over the Time Driver. Instead of saying announcing that it was being shut down, it just cackled like a witch, before dropping the transformation. “Let’s see if Aki’s got a bar fight on his hands.”

The café was a lot calmer when we got back, which surprised me. Aki could be antagonistic sometimes. A lot of times. He was still sitting with Oscar and Reina. They both looked upset, but they were talking normally now.

“Alright, alright. The truth is… I do recognize you, Reina. I remember dating you, but… I don’t remember agreeing to get married,” Oscar sighed. “I’m sorry.”

“Then why would you go through the trouble of insulting me? You could have just… I don’t know. Broke up with me like a normal person?” Reina said, rubbing her eyes.

“And say what? Sorry, I forgot why we were holding this whole wedding thing? Honestly, It looked very… creepy, that a wedding was happening at all,” Oscar said.

“I would be worried if my significant other was suddenly preparing for a wedding that I didn’t think I was involved in,” Akito said, glancing up when he noticed I was coming in, “But that doesn’t excuse you insulting her.”

“I thought she was crazy, alright? This was before I knew about all of this Year nonsense. That it could be anything besides what it looked like didn’t even cross my mind,” Oscar said.

“So, because you thought I was crazy, you didn’t think you needed to treat me with respect?” Reina said, her tone raising in anger again.

Oscar sighed, “I’m sorry. You’re right. That was awful. Is there anything I can do to make up for it? Do you want to try to… try again now that we both understand what’s going on?”

Reina shook her head slowly. Now that her anger and hurt was directed towards the person it actually was meant for, she seemed a little more relaxed. “No. I don’t think that’s a good idea. I am glad that we talked though,” she said like she was closing a book that she had struggled with, but had ultimately finished.

“Again, I’m sorry,” Oscar said.

“Me too,” Reina said. She stood up. “I’ll see you around, I’m sure.” She noticed I was back. “Meiki, you still owe me an ice cream. I gotta go.”

“Sure,” I said, and watched her leave before walking up to Aki and Oscar. Meiko followed me. “I’m glad that got sorted out. I was worried about her…”

“Yes. It’s excellent, I’m sure,” Oscar snapped. “Meiki, these ReMares of yours need to be stopped.” He stood up and left as well.

“Tell me something I don’t know,” I muttered.

“Right? Neither of them payed for food,” Aki complained.

“I'll pay,” I offered. “I was going to pay for Reina's anyway.”

“Nah, it's fine. What happened?” Aki asked. I explained quickly about our encounter with Summer. His face looked serious as he listened.

“He might listen to you,” Meiko suggested.

“He might,” Akito agreed. “Could make him less of a butt head if he can eat real food.”

I heard an aggravated yell from upstairs. Meiko sighed. “If food cured that, I'd have less to worry about. I’ve got to go before he breaks something.”

“How is he doing?” Aki asked quietly.

“Still charming as ever,” Meiko said blandly. “Isn't thrilled that the Spring Driver wasn't finished a month ago.”

Aki sighed. “He wouldn’t be.”

Meiko nodded, before leaving to go up the side stairs. Aki stood up gingerly and walked back over to the cash register. I followed. “I don’t know if it would help…” I said quietly.

“I didn’t even say my plan yet!” Aki objected.

“Plan?” I blinked, “No… I meant about feeding Nisei.”

“Rou still liked eating when Ki was with him.” Aki gave me an appraising look.

“Nisei is different.”

“Do you still think you’re turning into a ReMare?”

“I don’t know, Aki. I hate this. I don't know what I am.” I sighed. “What were you planning?”

“Calling Maneki over and over until we get Ki on the line. And then bothering him until he helps us,” Aki said as if he was suggesting the best way to defeat the bad guys was to do a real sick bike stunt on the moon.

“I changed my answer. I know that won’t help.” I smiled. “It isn’t your worst idea, but…” I shrugged. It definitely had a high chance of just angering the tiger ReMare.

“Yeah, I know. I just wish I could cheer him up,” Aki said, leaning back in his chair. His gaze flickered to the ceiling.

“Me too. I gotta go back to work,” I glanced at my phone. I had left my bike back at the station, so I’d have to take a bus. “If the horse ReMare or Nisei-kun shows up again, let me know, okay?”

“Yes, boss,” Aki said lazily, saluting me as I walked out the door.

Nisei didn’t show up at work after lunch, and I worried.

 


	21. Papers

Weeks passed slowly with little progress. Meiko returned to work as much as she could, but she was still frequently absent. Nisei had disappeared. I patrolled the streets in my free time, and Akito recovered. There was no sign of Ki or Maneki. It felt like we were stuck in the moment of having just tripped on the edge of a cliff.

It was driving Rou up the wall. I stopped by in the evening to find Meiko sleeping on the couch and Rou working on the computer, half asleep himself. Sharky swam nervously through the air over his head. I walked over and touched his shoulder. “Rou, take a break. Get away from the computer for a minute.”

Rou spun around and glared up at me. “I can’t!” He had tears in his bloodshot eyes. “I’m not making any progress. I need to keep working.” He must have read the worry in my face, because he turned back around to hide his expression.

Well, too bad. I could see it in the tension in his shoulders. I wrapped my arms around him. “It's okay. I know you’re worried about Ki.”

“It's not okay. We need to rescue him,” Rou grumbled as he tried to go back to work, ignoring my embrace.

“You need to rest before you hurt yourself,” I continued. “We don’t even have any leads for that stupid horse, let alone Ki. You have time.”

“There is no time!” Rou objected. “It's already too late. And the longer it takes the harder it's going to be. And it's taking too-”

“Do you trust me?” I cut him off.

“Yes, but…” Rou continued objecting.

“As the champion of the Time Driver,” I stressed the word time, smiling a little at the word play, “I swear, even if Maneki forces Ki to eat the whole town, I will get him back,” I said firmly. “With your help. And with Akito and Meiko too. We have enough time.”

He was quiet, and I could feel him relax a little in my arms. “Your puns are awful.”

“I know.”

“I’m no good on my own,” he muttered into the crook of my arm.

I ruffled his hair. I still wasn’t used to it being black, instead of the usual shock of pink. “None of us are. That’s why we have each other.”

I heard soft clapping from the door to the stairwell. Aki was leaning against the door frame. ”That was beautiful.”

“Shut up,” Rou snapped, stiffening again. I rested my chin on top of his head, shushing him.

“Relax. It’s true, Jiro,” Aki said gently. “I have good news.”

“Did you find him?” Rou asked, standing up abruptly, knocking my chin back.

“Ow,” I complained, rubbing my chin. Rou flashed me an apologetic look before focusing on Akito.

“No, but we’ve got a clue,” Aki said, and produced an origami fox with a flourish. “I found this on my bike, with a flier for Puffy-kun appearing at the TomoMart near the station.”

Rou snatched it out of Akito’s hands, and inspected it, “It’s his…” He said reverently. “I can feel his energy…”

“You’re welcome,” Akito said in a sing-song voice.

Rou glanced back at him and grinned, before throwing himself at the shorter man. Akito stumbled, but caught Rou in a tight embrace. “Thank you, Akkun,” Rou said, before letting him go. “Wake up Meiko, we can go now.”

“Akkun, huh? It’s been a while since you’ve called me that,” Akito said, grinning stupidly, “But hold on to your pants, it’s on Grandparent’s day.”

“When is that? Tomorrow?” Rou demanded.

“It’s like, in a week,” I said.

“Oh,” Rou said, and it was like the air went out of him.

“Which means you have some time to get rested up,” I said sternly, “So that you don’t just fall over with a stiff breeze.”

“Right. Right. I’ll do that,” Rou said, although he looked at his computer as if it was offering him a million yen.

“Come downstairs. You can take a nap in my bed and I’ll make you some dinner,” Akito said, grinning as if he was offering more.

Rou paused, still tempted by the computer. He nodded slowly. “Alright. I am pretty hungry. Meiki?”

“Still not hungry,” I said, as if it were the millionth lottery ticket that I had bought and lost.

“I don’t understand how you can still function without taking in a considerable amount of calories,” Rou muttered, trying to puzzle it out. “The drivers burn a lot of energy, and it's important to...” Akito gently took him by the shoulders and guided him to the elevator.

“Well, as long as I continue to function it’s fine,” I said, although it really wasn’t. I'd take it as a good sign that Rou was feeling good enough to think about a problem that wasn't Ki and the Spring Driver. “See you later.”

“Wait!” Rou stopped and ducked away from Akito and went back to me. He produced a pile of origami paper and a printed image that looked a bit like the complicated sigils from the other three seasonal belts. “Try and write that on some origami with the Memoka. I might be able to use it.”

It looked complicated. “I’ll try.”

“Thanks,” Rou said, as Akito grabbed him by the arm again and dragged him downstairs.

I smiled a little and studied the image. I traced it with a finger slowly, getting a feel for it's shape. Sharky swam over quietly. She bit one of the pieces of paper and shook it violently. “Hey! Rou needs me to do stuff with that!”

Sharky dropped it and picked up a pen. She scribbled awkwardly on the paper. In big, barely legible katakana she had wrote, “WHY NO EAT?!”

I sounded it out slowly, and when I got it right, she bobbed excitedly. “I don’t knooooow,” I whined, slumping down on the table. “I thought that it was because I saw your memories and it scared me, but it’s been going on too long… A normal person would be wasted away to nothing by now. I'm not even hungry and I hate it.”

“NOT BEING HUNGRY IS GOOD,” Sharky scrawled.

I hesitated. “It is good. But humans need to eat.” I uncapped my Memoka and carefully tried to draw out the weird sigil. “And it doesn’t seem healthy. Everything eats something. Even ReMares. Do Spirits? It seems like they should but... I don't know.”

Sharky swam circles around me, watching me draw. She stopped and carefully wrote another message. “SPIRITS EAT MEMORIES TOO. DIFFERENT THOUGH. HUMANS DON’T FORGET.”

“What?” I said, my hand slipping and messing up the sigil. “They do?”

Sharky bobbed in agreement.

“Does… Does Rou know this?” I asked.

Sharky paused and shook her head, and then nodded. “DON’T KNOW. KI ALWAYS WITH HUMAN. DOESN’T KNOW HUNGRY,” she wrote. “SHARKY IS GETTING STRONGER FAST. YEAR IS TOO.”

“Is that... Is that my problem?” I asked. I might not be becoming more like a ReMare, but I did use a lot of Spirit energy on a regular basis. I could be becoming more like a Spirit. “Why I can't eat?”

“DON'T THINK SO. ROU EATS.”

“Huh. Well. That’s good to know,” I said, not bothering to hide the bitterness in my voice. “So, I’m not becoming like a spirit either. Great.” I crumpled up the messed up paper, and tried again on another piece. Sharky thrashed in the air, and then swam to the other side of the room. I wondered briefly if I had made her angry with me. I didn't know how, and it frustrated me further.

I heard Meiko yawn and glanced over at her. She sat up slowly, and looked blearily at me. “Are you talking to yourself?” she asked.

“No, I was talking to Sharky,” I said, swallowing my bitterness. She had to deal with Rou's moods a lot, and I didn't want to add anything else to her plate. I turned my attention back to attempting to draw the sigil. “I’m sorry, did I wake you?”

She shook her head no, and asked, “Where’s Rou?”

“Aki convinced him to take a nap. He found a fox origami from Ki. So we’ve got a mission this Friday,” I said.

“Oh good. I’m getting awfully tired of being holed up here,” she said, and slumped back in the couch.

“If it’s too much, come back to work for a while. Give your brain a break,” I said. “It’s starting to get awkward by myself.” Okuda-san had told me that while the ratings were better than when it was just Meiko by herself, it still wasn’t as good as it was when we were together, and threatened to take me off the air entirely and replace us with new talent until Meiko came back.

“Soon. If I can help Rou get to a breakthrough point, then he should be able to do it on his own for a while,” Meiko stretched and stood up, walking over to Rou’s tiny kitchen and starting some hot water for tea.

“I hope so. Maybe we’ll beat Ki this week and Rou won’t need to make Spring without Ki’s help,” I said, although I couldn’t put much hope into my voice.

“That would be nice,” Meiko agreed. She came over with two mugs of tea, giving one to me and sitting down at Rou’s laptop. She had her own Driver plugged into the docking station. We worked quietly for a few hours, until Rou and Akito came back upstairs.

Rou seemed more relaxed than he had in over a month. He leaned over my shoulder and checked the latest attempt at drawing the sigil. At this point, the form was mostly right, and I had taken to adding pink dots with the Sakura Memoka at the end of each line, and I had made the base circle gold, to make it more interesting.

“Interesting. I’m not sure that will work, but it’s worth a try,” Rou said.

“We don’t have all the spring Memoka’s, or I’d add more,” I said, leaning back to stretch out stiff muscles. “Summer is the only one where we have all three.”

“It's not the Memokas that make a driver, although they could help. We just need the right kind of energy,” Rou said. “We didn’t have any of the right Memokas when we made Summer, Autumn or Winter. Ki could channel the energy from the environment. But...” He frowned and shook his head. “Well, I was hoping that the Year Memoka would be enough.”

“How so?” I asked.

“White light contains all colors,” Rou said simply.

“We’ll test it later,” Meiko said distractedly. “If that doesn’t work, we’ll try something else.”

“Yeah, maybe I can write the kanji for spring in his hand three times, and then he can eat it,” I said, taking Rou’s hand as I said it and I wrote Spring across his palm with the pink Memoka. “There, try it.”

Rou hesitated, but mimed eating the kanji anyway. There actually was a moment of silence while we all dared to hope that something would happen. Rou burst into laughter, like a dam breaking. After a few minutes he was able to calm down, rubbing his face with his hand. “If only it was that easy.”

“I should have you write some signs for me. You’ve got cute handwriting,” Aki said, looping an arm over both of our shoulders. “See, here I was thinking that these notes were your hand writing.” He nodded his head to the bits of origami paper that Sharky had written all over.

“That was Sharky,” I said, and explained what she had told me. “So, I still don’t know what’s going on with me…”

“My situation and yours are a little different,” Rou said, like it was obvious. “Ki and I shared a body, but we're separate people. The energy you use as Year might be mixing with your soul more than Ki and I mixed.” Sharky darted back from the other side of the room where she had been sulking and swam around him excitedly, “Is that what you think?”

“So... I'm eating memories?” I said, feeling a little relieved.

“It sounds possible. You do get mopey and bored when nothing is going on,” Meiki said. “Even when you were still eating a lot.

“It’s probably just one of those perks of being the Bright Lady’s chosen. Like seeing other people’s memories,” Rou agreed.

“And getting tons of upgrades,” Aki added. “Maybe when you slipped into Sharky’s memories, you subconsciously realized that you could eat memories like a spirit and that you didn’t need food.” Akito sounded distracted as he looked at the pieces of paper closely. “Sharky, we gotta teach you how to write in hiragana at least. This is terrible.”

Sharky responded by biting his hand and worrying it with her paper teeth. Akito grimaced and tried to pull his hand out of her mouth, “Sorry, sorry!”

“Hah…” I exhaled and leaned against the two boys. “Thanks. I feel better about it, a little.”

“Were you still worried that you’re turning into a ReMare?” Akito asked, tugging on my braid a little.

Meiko looked up sharply. I hadn’t shared that particular worry with her. “No, nothing like that,” I said. Explaining my feelings was like I was trying to pick up a box that was too large to not be awkward. “I just miss food. You’re an amazing cook, and Meiki and I used to go out to lunch all the time… Those are precious memories too…” I stared down at the Memokas scattered on the table with the ruined origami papers. I took a deep breath to keep from crying, “I miss it.”

Meiko abandoned the computer and wrapped her arms around me tightly. “Of course you do. I’m sorry.”

I let my three friends hold me, taking comfort in their presence. “I feel stupid. We’ve got bigger problems right now than whether or not I can eat a sandwich.”

“Really? Just a couple of hours ago you were telling me I had better take care of myself so that we could face those problems without falling apart,” Rou said, petting my head. I leaned into his hand.

“I did say something that cool, didn't I?” I sniffled.

“I know, I was surprised too,” Rou said smiling a little.

“Hey,” I said, pushing him away gently, laughing a little. “Rude.”

When Friday came, we staked out the TomoMart. It was in the train station, so it was easy enough to wait around outside the small convenience store while the mascot handlers and TV crew got things set up.

Rou paced in front of the bench we had taken over, looking over his shoulder occasionally and muttering to himself. Arachne rode on his shoulder, perching precariously.

“Relax, Rou. You look like you’re thinking about robbing the place,” Akito said as he came back from the vending machine. He pressed a bottle of cola into Rou’s hands and tossed me a bottle of sparkling water. Akito sat down and handed Meiko a bottle of green tea, before cracking open a can of Bawse Coffee for himself.

“I can't relax. I can't do anything. Except worry,” Rou said brandishing the bottle of soda at Akito.

Akito leaned out of the way. “If that cola explodes, I'm not getting you another one, Jiro-chan.”

“If it explodes, I'm pointing it at you,” Rou muttered.

“Enough, both of you,” Meiko said quietly, taking a sip of tea.

“Oh, let them bicker,” I said, stretching. I knew Akito was trying to distract Rou from his nerves. And speaking of Rou's nerves, I noticed Katsumi arguing with one of the camera technicians. A fight between her and Akito was the last thing we needed right now, so I decided to run interference before it got difficult. “I’m going to go talk to the handlers.” Meiko noticed too, and gave a slight nod, before asking Rou some complicated computer question.

Taking the moment to slip away, I walked over to the community organizer. “Katsumi-san, how’s it going?” I asked, smiling charmingly.

She startled from looking at her clipboard. “Oh! Meiki-san! Are you covering this event too?” She glanced around for the radio gear and Meiko. She saw Meiko leaning against Akito, who looked down at her in wide eyed shock. Meiko patted the seat next to her to try and convince Rou to sit down. Katsumi's mouth grew thin and pinched when she saw Rou.

“I’m just here with my friends,” I said, firmly, implicitly forbidding her from arguing with Rou. I wasn’t sure how well that would actually work, especially if Rou noticed her. “And maybe some Year business, sorry,” I added.

“I see,” she said, her limbs stiff and awkward.

“There was an event over in Kamitori a few weeks ago that got attacked, and we got sort of a tip that this one would too,” I explained.

“What event in Kamitori? That’s not till next week,” Katsumi said, checking her papers. She glanced up at my face and sighed. “Again? This is such a nuisance.”

“I know,” I agreed. A small crowd had started to join the rest of the Mei Brigade.

Katsumi sighed, “Haruki-san, go set up a barrier so they don’t go rushing into the scene. Ren-san are you almost ready to bring Puffy-kun out?” A young man scampered to obey, and a middle aged woman nodded, and disappeared into the tent they had set up around the corner from the TomoMart. “We’ll keep going. Keep things under control. I’m counting on you.”

“Right,” I said. “You can count on us. But if things get too wild, please listen to us and evacuate.”

“Deal,” Katsumi said, and walked purposefully into the store to talk with the manager.

I headed back over to my friends. They had convinced Rou to sit down. He was still looking around wildly, but with other people milling around, he looked more like he was super excited to see Puffy-kun than like he was a potential criminal. “I let them know what’s up,” I announced. “If we gotta evacuate, they’ll help.”

“Was that my mother?” Rou asked, suddenly focused on me.

I cringed and nodded, “Try not to get into a fight with her. We’ll need you if Ki shows up. You know him the best.”

“I know what’s important right now!” Rou snapped.

“It’s okay to be worried about her,” Meiko said quietly, rubbing his shoulder, trying to get him to calm back down.

“Who said I was worried?!” Rou shrugged her off and crossed his arms.

“He’s totally worried,” Aki grinned. Rou stood up and started pacing again.

“It's normal to be worried. I’m worried!” I said, Rou's wound up mood catching at my own worries. “What if Maneki shows up with Ki? We're not ready to fight her.”

“It’ll be alright. We’re all here, and we’re well rested and ready,” Aki said, flapping a hand dismissively. I wasn't sure he really felt that way either, but it was enough to remind me that we were trying to break the tension, not make it worse.

A cameraman took his place near the front of the TomoMart, and the crowd got a little more restless. “Are you ready everyone? It’s Puffy-kun's first day of working at the TomoMart! He’s going to work hard for Oara City!” A girl in pigtails and a happi coat cutely into a microphone.

She was pretty skilled, and the crowd responded with cheers. The girlish announcer was a skill that I hadn’t quite mastered. I was told I had a different sort of charm, or as Meiko put it, I was a big goofy puppy. That was fine with me. “She’s almost got as cute of a presenter’s voice as Meiko,” I said, appreciatively. Meiko blushed and punched me in the shoulder. I grinned and rubbed the spot where she had hit. “What? I said almost. You’re clearly the cutest.”

Akito made a gagging face to Rou, who rolled his eyes and took a drink of his cola. Satisfied with Rou’s reaction, he turned to give me a serious face, that he was clearly struggling to keep straight. “No flirting, this is serious business.”

“Yes, very serious,” I agreed, and put my hands primly on my lap. “Please, Aki-sensei, show me how to be super serious with no flirting.” I gave him a seated bow.

“Yes, I am the best person to learn that from,” Aki agreed, also putting his hands in his lap and bowing.

Meiko shoved my shoulder again, and I laughed. “Sorry, sorry.”

“Idiots,” Rou muttered, not looking over at us.

Puffy-kun's theme music came playing from the store’s speakers, replacing the near constant stream of an instrumental version of Dancing Queen with a peppy industrial children’s song about working hard.

Ren came out of the tent with her own happi coat on, guiding Puffy-kun out to the crowd. The weird smokestack mascot danced its way over to the crowd. Once In front of us, he crouched down and jumped up, flailing wildly. I liked his energy. I grinned and stood up to edge my way over to the front of the crowd. I reached up my hand to high five Puffy-kun and he made an exaggerated surprised face, and then crossed his arms in peace signs before jumping up and hitting my hand. “Ha! That’s right! Living in color, Puffy-kun!” I said, doing my own crossed peace sign pose back at him. He pretended to laugh into his hands as if embarrassed, before running over to the announcer and pointing at me, jumping excitedly.

“Haha, Looks like you have a famous fan, Puffy-kun!” The cute announcer girl said, “Hello, Meiki, from Mei Brigade F.M. 98.5! Is Meiko-chan here too?”

“Um, I don’t think so!” I lied cheerfully. I could guess that as soon as the video camera pointed in my direction, Meiko had hid. “Nice to see you, Puffy-kun! I’ll let you get to work!” Puffy-kun nodded, and the cute announcer started a speech about how TomoMart was introducing a new feature which allowed people to have food and snacks delivered to their doors.

I retreated back into the crowd, chatting merrily with other people who recognized me as I went. Sure enough, when I got back to Meiko and the boys, Meiko had put on sunglasses and a mint green face mask. “I think I’m going to be on TV!” I said cheerfully.

“Of course you are,” Meiko said, looking suspiciously at the few people who were looking back at me, daring them to recognize her. A few of them muttered to each other, but didn’t draw any further attention to us. They were here for Puffy-kun after all.

“Aw, why didn’t I think of that? I could have promoted my restaurant. Or the Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital recovery…” Akito said, hitting his forehead with the palm of his hand.

“Your mom is friends with mine. It would not be hard for you to convince them to bring that weird thing to either place,” Rou said, still concentrating on looking out for Ki.

“Oh, right. Good point,” Akito said, surprised. “See, this is why I keep you around.”

“Is it really?” Meiko asked.

“Well, not the only reason,” Akito said, grinning. He winked at her, and put an arm around Rou. Meiko blushed furiously behind her mask and punched him in the shoulder. At the same time Rou elbowed him hard in the chest. “Ooooow!” Akito whined. “Meiki, they’re picking on me!”

“I dunno, you probably deserved that one,” I said.

The crowd moved forwards as Puffy-kun entered the store. The manager gave him some small tasks, which he did awkwardly and with some help from his handlers. “Where’s Ki?” Rou muttered, standing up to follow them. Just then ink pooled up from the back of the store. “Is that him?” he asked, pointing it out.

I glanced at Aki and Meiko, and we both hurried over to Rou. It didn’t look good, with the ReMare forming on the opposite side of a human wall. It would be difficult to get in. Rou was already pushing people to get through. I followed closely, “Excuse us, coming through. Katsumi-san, could you?” I said, glancing at the forming ReMare.

She swore under her breath and then faced the crowd, “Ladies and Gentlemen, let’s take this back outside for some more photo opportunities!” She sounded incredibly stressed, despite her light words. People grumbled their confusion as they shuffled out.

By the time we got to the corner, the ReMare had formed. It was the horse ReMare from before. Rou swore, echoing his mother. “This guy?” he complained.

“Well! I’m sorry I’m not the one you were hoping to see!” The horse said, affronted. “You’re not exactly the top of my list either!”

“Get back, Jiro,” Aki said, putting his driver to his waist. Rou complied, heading to the door of the store, looking around to see if any more were going to show up.

“Henshin!” The three of us said together. Aki and Meiko stamped their Drivers, and I swiped mine with the silver Memoka. It was noisy and as each of the drivers played their transformation music and phrase. A large silver circle appeared in front of me, and then my armor appeared. I felt slow and heavy, but we had him cornered. It would be hard for him to run. Aki and Meiko’s sigils appeared and passed over them, and their armor appeared.

“This isn’t fair at all!” the horse grumbled.

“Tough luck, chuck,” I said, and punched him in the gut. It squelched unpleasantly, and he started melting into the ground.

“My name is Charlieeee,” he said, as he became a puddle. He slipped under our feet and to the door before reforming. It was more difficult for us to get out of the shop. TomoMart’s aisles were not built with people in armor in mind anymore than they were built for oddly shaped mascots. We bumped into each other in the rush, but finally managed to get out.

The scene that greeted us at the doorway would have been hilarious, if I hadn’t been worried about people’s safety. Charlie was facing down Puffy-kun, while the crowd scrambled back. “My old nemesis…” Charlie said gruffly. “We meet again.”

Puffy-kun made a complicated gesture of confusion, while backing away.

Fall summoned one of his glaives and chucked it at Charlie, who spun away and turned to face us. “Rude! I was trying to face this knave! Don’t interrupt!”

“He’s just a mascot. You're fighting us,” I said, stepping forward. My fingers itched to draw the Memoka and attack, but it hadn’t chimed yet. Fall and Winter advanced

Charlie looked around desperately, before grabbing Rou and pulling him close. Rou struggled for a moment and looked dazed, as Charlie gained some stripes of pink.

“Rou!” Fall shouted, and darted in to attack. Charlie swung Rou in front of him, and Fall screeched to a halt. Winter gestured for us to flank the horse ReMare, and I nodded. We both slowly edged around as Charlie watched Fall warily. “Let go of him,” Fall growled, stepping forward.

“I don’t think I will,” Charlie said, stepping back. He glanced warily from side to side, trying to keep an eye on Winter and me.

Suddenly there was a bright blue blur and a terrible sound, and Charlie was on the ground, Rou knocked out of his arms. Fall rushed forward to catch Rou, and brought him away from the monster.

“You again!” Charlie objected, struggling with Summer. “Unhand me!”

Summer snarled and summoned his nunchaku, which he pressed up against Charlie’s neck, burning him with bright light.

Charlie wailed and threw Summer off. Summer went rolling to the side, and he scampered up to his feet. As Charlie got up, my belt chimed “Prism Charge Complete!” I grinned and drew the Prism Ax, and advanced on the horse. Charlie took one look at me and tried to turn and run, but Winter had drawn her own sword and was blocking the way.

He hesitated, and turned towards Fall, who was holding up Rou. He sensed weakness there, and charged. I ran, but I wasn't fast enough. He was slipping away. Instead, I flung the silvery glowing ax at his back, “I don’t think so!” I said. It hit him in shoulder and he stumbled forward. Charlie flashed a pained grin back at me and continued heading towards Fall. It didn't slow him enough. I fumbled for the sakura Memoka. Fall had one of his glaives out and was holding it out in front of Rou protectively. I got it out and started to swipe it across the Driver. “Henshin!”

Pink light swirled around me, but as the Driver announced the transformation, a roaring scream overpowered it, and Summer tackled Charlie again.

“Fugitive color,” Summer’s belt growled and his fist glowed. He smashed it into Charlie’s face and the horse ReMare melted, leaving behind a brown ball of light. My ax fell to the ground.

“Thanks, bro!” Fall said, and erased his transformation, keeping a loose arm around Rou, who had a complicated expression of anger and confusion as he regained his memories.

Summer snarled and picked up the ball of brown light, pressing it against the Summer Driver. It disappeared, and streaks of brown appeared on his armor. I ran towards him, suddenly feeling light and quick in my Sakura armor. “Hey! Don’t eat that!”

Summer glanced up at me, and picked up my ax. Staring right at me, he crushed the Memoka. Bits of plastic shards fell to the ground, and in his hand he had a silver globe of light. I hesitated, horrified that the Memoka was broken. Summer kept eye contact, and I knew exactly what he planned on doing. I tackled him, trying to grab the globe of light. With a bit of a struggle, he pinned me down with one arm, and shoved the silver globe into his driver. Streaks of silver appeared on his armor and he suddenly got heavier. I grunted under the weight, struggling to push him off. I didn’t want him to still be there when Sakura timed out.

“Summer! No!” Aki said, letting go of Rou and stepping forward to pull Summer off of me. Summer grabbed Aki’s collar and for a second it looked like Summer was going to punch him in the face. He hesitated though, and just shoved him back roughly towards Rou. Aki staggered, and reached to stamp his driver again. Summer dug his knee into my chest, harder this time, and I started to panic that the Sakura armor would break even before the time ran out.

“Summer,” Winter said, coolly appearing next to us. She looked tired, her shoulders heaving, but at the moment she could be an angel. “Get up,” she said, her sword leveled next to Summer’s eyes. He snarled and stood up slowly. Winter followed the movement with her sword. I scrambled up and tried to decide which Memoka to use. He had taken my most physically powerful one, and he had attributes of Rain, Stars, and Obon, which were fairly flexible and quick. And who knew what the brown one did.

I settled on Year. I removed the Sakura Memoka and swiped the Year Memoka. "This is your Year, let's go, let's go, Yeah!" It chimed as light swirled around me. This time, I noticed there were hints of other colors shimmering in the white light, before my armor appeared.

"Give them back, Summer." I said gently. "I don't want to fight you."

Summer snarled and whipped out his nunchaku, which seemed longer, and more like two short staves connected by glowing light. He knocked aside Winter's sword and scampered back. When Winter went to slash at him, all she caught was the crumpling husk of a shed form. He reappeared on the second floor of the station, and ran off, quickly disappearing from view.

 

 


	22. Paths

Everything felt frozen for a moment as we processed what happened. Winter shook her head. “I’ll be back,” she said and halfheartedly chased after him. I don’t think she expected to catch up with him, but maybe she hoped to get away from people to transform back.

I sighed and erased my transformation. I rubbed my chest. I felt bruised and short of breath. “Well, shit, Aki. Your brother is a pain in the ass."

"Sorry," Aki said, in a tone that didn't exactly sound sorry. He lifted his hands and shrugged. "I can't say I didn't expect him to be a nuisance. Brothers suck sometimes, especially when they're also monsters."

“It’s not a setback we can afford right now,” Rou said, glancing up at Aki. “We have to do something about him.”

“Yeah, I know,” Aki sighed. “I didn’t think he would break a Memoka. I didn't think he _could_ break a Memoka.”

Rou stood up, and walked over to the shell of armor that Summer had left behind. "There's something here..." Tucked into the debris, there was a pink crane. He picked it up, and inspected it. "From Ki? Was this what he wanted us to see?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked. Cranes were a fairly standard origami. I could make them in my sleep, but it wasn’t one we had used at all for fighting ReMares yet.

"That he's inscrutable as always," Akito muttered, and Meiko walked up beside him, glancing over at him in askance, "They found another origami from Ki."

"I don't know. Cranes are a symbol of good fortune and longevity," Rou said. He sounded lost in thought. “People make a thousand for people who are sick, to pray for them to get better.”

I couldn’t see how that could connect to any message that Ki would send us. But it was with Summer, who had helped us once, but refused to be part of the Mei Brigade. "So... Is he helping Nisei steal spirits from us then?" I asked, picking up shards of what used to be the silver Memoka. I didn’t know if it could be repaired and I didn’t just want to leave it there where a ReMare could pick it up and bring it back to Maneki.

“No,” Rou objected immediately. I glanced over at him and he sighed. "I don't think so.”

"Summer doesn't seem to be allied with ReMares or with us, so Ki might be trying to use him as a neutral party," Meiko said, trying to be conciliatory.

"Nisei is part of the Mei Brigade," Akito said firmly.

"Tell that to Nisei," I grumbled, "I can't transform into Silver anymore."

"I thought we weren't kicking people out for being shitheads?" Akito asked. "Cause again, that would basically leave Meiko."

Meiko shook her head. "Probably not. I was... serious about attacking your brother.” She seemed angry. Well, so was I. I was willing to try to bring Nisei into the fold for Akito, but it had backfired badly. “If he hadn’t used that weird cicada trick of his, he would be hurt.”

"I think you're still safely in the “not a butt head camp” but," Akito trailed off when he noticed that we were all staring at him, surprised that he wasn't upset at her. “What? I’m not happy with this fight either. And I know you guys are trying, for my sake.”

"Mmhm," Meiko said, as if she wasn't entirely sure she agreed. “You best take responsibility for him then.”

"That's not important!" Rou said, shaking his head. "For some reason, Ki gave origami to Nisei. We need to figure out what he's planning."

"We need to get those spirits back," I corrected. Silver was an ally too, and now it was gone.

"Why? It's not like I can actually put them back into Memokas right now," Rou grumbled. “We should focus on Ki.”

Akito put a hand on Rou's back. "Come on, no sense standing here," Akito said, tilting his head towards the crowd that was wandering back to try and continue their show. “We can argue at home.” The cameraman kept staring over at us, as if tempted to get a TV exclusive scoop on Year and the others. So far they had just been reporting information that the radio station gave them, and I'm sure it irked them not to have good footage of us.

"Yeah, let's go. Unrelated, but do those guys show up on film?" I asked, as we headed out to the bike parking.

"Sort of," Rou said, "But it's hard for people to remember seeing them. Even if they've been defeated. I can remember that it was a horse ReMare, and that it was inky and only had brown light, but if someone asked me to draw a picture, I'd come up blank..."

"I probably could, though," Meiko said puzzled.

"You have Winter. I don't even have Ki protecting me anymore. If I run into a ReMare and it doesn't get defeated, I won't remember it,” Rou kicked the kickstand for his bike a little too roughly and climbed aboard. Without waiting for a response, he put on his helmet and sped off.

"So he goes off by himself like an idiot," Akito grumbled. “Let’s go before he gets into trouble.” He got onto his Harvester and followed after Rou.

I had time to think as I drove back to Akito’s restaurant. According to Rou and Ki’s memories, they had ventured into the Under to figure out how to rehabilitate spirits. They had risked their lives to protect the spirits we saved.

They were upstairs when Meiko and I got there. Rou was sitting on the couch, still looking at the crane. Akito was sitting on the arm of the couch, messing with his smart phone.

I continued our discussion as if we hadn’t changed locations. "Does that mean we're back to square one, fighting and letting them go get corrupted again? Let me see that." I held out my hand for the origami. "Maybe he wrote something inside.”

Rou shook his head, "We'll put any we can catch into origami. I can at least do that on my own." His voice was like taking a bite of baker's chocolate, harsh and bitter. He ignored my second request, his hand clutching the origami, unwilling to let it go. I left my hand out, patiently.

"We still haven't tested the sigils Meiki made. Don't give up yet," Meiko said, bopping him on the head before heading over to the laptop and sitting down to work.

Rou frowned like he didn't believe her, and rubbed his head. "Here," he said, suddenly, as if just remembering that I had asked to see the origami. He handed it over, and looked away. “Careful. Don’t mess it up too much.”

As soon as it touched my hand, I fell into a memory. It was baffling. Unlike the others I had experienced, rather than falling into a scene or even seeing jumbled flashes of a memory, it was just numbers, letters, and strange symbols. It looked like some sort of math, but it wasn't any I had ever studied. Not that I was ever particularly good at math. My best subjects in school were English, Japanese, music, and physical education.

Almost as soon as it started, it disappeared, and I dropped the piece of paper. It fluttered down to the coffee table. I stared at it. I felt the others' eyes on me and looked up. "That was either the worst gibberish or some sort of coded message."

“You barely even touched it,” Aki said, incredulous.

"You got a memory from it?" Rou demanded.

"Yeah, but it was all nonsense,” I said shaking my head, “I couldn’t understand it. It was just a bunch of numbers and junk.”

“Pick it up again. Write down everything you see,” Rou said, grabbing a piece of paper and a pen and thrusting it at me.

“I’ll try,” I said, taking it. I took a deep breath and picked up the origami paper again. I could feel my friends’ eyes on me, watching expectantly. Nothing happened. I frowned and closed my eyes, trying to get the memory to come back. I sat in darkness for a long moment. I heard Aki shuffle impatiently, and Meiko return to typing quietly on the computer. Rou didn’t move. Nothing happened.

I had an idea. I dropped the pen on the table. Blindly, I reached out for Rou’s hand. I missed once, and then caught his hand in mine. It was rough and bony, and surprisingly warm. It was dark for a moment longer, and then suddenly the numbers and symbols appeared again, blazing white against the darkness. A faint pink glow hovered near my head. I watched as carefully as I could, trying to memorize it as much as I could.

Rou pulled his hand away abruptly. The memory faded, and I opened my eyes slowly. I picked up the pen again and started writing everything I remembered. I filled up half a page of notebook paper before faltering. “I… I think that’s all of it.”

“I saw it too,” Rou said, sounding subdued. “It’s a formula.” He took the notebook, and checked it over. He fixed a few things, and then stood up and went over to the laptop. Meiko got up to let him sit down.

“So… Ki is trying to help us?” Aki asked, watching Rou. “Why doesn’t he just show up and let us beat the ReMare out of him?”

“I’m sure he has his reasons,” Rou said, distracted.

It was quiet for a little while. Akito sighed, and clapped his hands on his lap, pushing himself to standing. “Meiki-chaaaan, let’s go find my annoying little brother.”

“Do you think he’ll just show up again? So soon after taking those spirits from us?” I asked, standing up anyway. It seemed like something to do, regardless of whether or not it would actually work.

“Who knows?” Aki said, laughing a little.

“Take it seriously, Aki Aki,” Meiko said quietly.

“When don’t I take things seriously?” Aki’s voice was light and easy, like a balloon floating by, but his eyes had a dangerous glint that sent shivers up my spine.

“Scary,” I muttered, and shook my head when Akito glanced at me in askance. “Let’s go.”

As soon as we got downstairs, I asked, “So, do you have any idea where Nisei would show up?”

“Nope!” Aki said cheerfully, “Do you?”

“No… I thought you had a plan, since you were suggesting it,” I complained at him. He just grinned and headed towards the door. “I’m not just going to search all over town for him!”

“We’re not going to!” Aki said, and flashed a page of silver origami paper at me. “I had a thought. Cranes live a long time, right?”

“I guess. Mythological ones do, anyway. What’s that supposed to have to do with anything?” I asked.

“Ki gave us a crane. And Nisei has Silver now, which is… well... Wisdom and Power!” He said, mimicking my transformation pose and the voice of the Time Driver. He shrugged. “That aside, it’s one of Fall’s colors too. I’m pretty sure it’s got something to do with Silver Week. Or, y’know. Grandparents' day. Which is today.”

“How would he know Nisei took Silver? And it came from an owl, not a crane,” I said slowly. It felt like he had taken a running leap without telling me, and I was left in the dust, confused as to how he had gotten so far ahead of me.

“Yeah, well. A bird is a bird,” Aki shrugged. “Let’s try it, at least. I can’t imagine that Ki wouldn’t have a reason for using a crane. If he just wanted to prove he was on our side, he could have just kept using the fox, as long as it had that memory attached.”

“I suppose that makes sense…” I said reluctantly. “I guess it can’t hurt.” I took the piece of foil origami paper. I folded it carefully until I had another crane. It wasn’t as good as Ki’s but it would work. Aki gave me a thumbs up, and we left for our bikes. I set the silver crane down on my Pair Device. There was a long loading sequence, and then a route appeared on screen.

“Where’s it heading?” Aki asked, leaning over my shoulder.

“I’m not sure. It looks like… the edge of town, maybe? It’s not anything I recognize.” I let him look, and he was just as puzzled.

“I’m not sure either. It’s just suburbs, isn’t it?” Aki asked.

“Maybe that’s where Nisei stays,” I said, although that didn’t seem right.

“We’ll find out soon enough.”

After driving a little while, I noticed that the weather was starting to turn. Clouds rolled in, and the sun disappeared. The air felt green, and fairly crackled with unspent energy. I could feel the Synchrocycle strain to correct my path from strong gusts of winds throwing me off balance.

Aki swerved and pulled off at the side of the rode, into a small restaurant's parking lot. I slowed down and stopped next to him. “The weather’s getting nasty,” Akito said, looking nervously at the darkest part of the sky.

“I reported the weather forecast this morning. It was supposed to be clear all day. Maybe a little cloudy, but nothing like this,” I said, as if that could make it not true.

“It’s typhoon weather,” Aki said, frowning. “Where did you get your forecast?”

“The Oara Weather Institute at the TV station,” I said, “Do you think a ReMare might have messed with their information?”

Akito nodded. A fierce gust blew, making me stagger back a few steps. Another gust carried a few droplets of rain, stinging because of their speed. Then suddenly, it was like someone had turned on a fire hose.

“Shit!” Aki swore, and we both grabbed our Pair Devices before dashing into the restaurant. We stood dripping at the entrance, breathing hard. “This is a hell of a thing to forget,” Aki said, gesturing at the sky through the door.

“This is bad,” I said, “People don’t know.”

“Welcome!” A young woman in an apron said. She startled upon seeing how drenched we were. ”Is it raining that hard?” She glanced out the door. It was like a wall of rain, pounding on the glass. “Um, here, we have some towels.” She darted back to the kitchen.

I pulled out my phone. “What are you doing?” Aki asked, pulling his wet shirt away from his chest.

“Calling the station. They can check another weather institute to see how bad it is, and get permission to issue emergency alerts,” I said as I waited for it to ring. As soon as it picked up, I started talking, “Nawata-san, this is Meiki. This storm looks nasty. Can you contact someone from the national weather station? I think something might be wrong with the local one.”

“Year stuff?”

I nodded, despite her being unable to see it through the phone, “Maybe. For now, we gotta make sure people get inside.”

“I’ll do what I can,” Nawata-san said. I heard her shouting back to someone else in the room, and then she returned to our conversation, “Okuda-san is asking if you can come in. Meiko too.”

“Call Meiko. I’m on the wrong side of town. I’ve just got my bike, so… I already had to take shelter in a restaurant. I don’t think I can make it in. If you need a witness report, call me back,” I said.

“Alright. Stay safe,” Nawata-san said, and hung up on me.

The waitress had came back with two rough towels, “Here. It’s not much, but please dry off.”

“Thanks, dear,” Aki said, taking one and wiping down. I took the other and did the same. We were still wet, but at least we weren’t dripping all over their floor anymore. “Can we get a table? It looks like we might have to camp out here a little while.”

“Yes, of course. This way!” She led us to a table in the corner. There was a window over the table, and I pulled the blinds so we could see out a little. “Menus are right there. I’ll bring you some drinks.”

“Thank you,” I said, and instinctively grabbed the menu to look through it.

“That was a little bit cool, wasn’t it?” Aki said, his own phone out, texting.

“What?” I asked, confused.

“Calling the station like that. Like a pro,” Aki said.

“I am a pro, idiot. You’ve seen me work before!”

“Yeah, but that was planned. This is an emergency, isn’t it?” Aki said. “The store lost power already. I told Rou to drag in my signs and use the generator if he needs it.”

“Ah, that must be salt in the wound,” I said. I imagined him pacing across the lab, snapping at the sky for interrupting his attempt to rescue Ki. The waitress came back and gave us both cups of hot tea, and left behind a thermos. I ordered a plate of fries and some omurice, and Akito ordered a hamburger steak.

“I’m sure,” Akito said, sounding amused. “It’ll give him something else to think about though.”

“Put him under more stress, you mean?” I said, “What the heck are the ReMares thinking? I didn’t think they actually wanted to destroy people physically. Dead people don't have memories.” I immediately regretted saying that. “Sorry.”

Akito’s expression became serious, and he waved off my apology. “Some of them do. Some of them like the memories of tragedies. They like to make people forget something awful happened. I used to see a case that came into the hospital where they would forget to turn off their space heater, and it’d set the house on fire. Except then they’d forget that too, and it’d happen again. That guy ended up getting arrested because the police thought he was doing it on purpose.”

“That sounds awful,” I said, horrified.

“It’s not that surprising. You said that the mantis ReMare was tormenting that girl that you brought to my café,” Aki said.

“You're right. I’m glad you were able to sort that out, at least,” I said. Oscar had seemed quieter at work, but when I asked him about it, he had said that as much as it was awful, he was glad it had been brought to his attention, and that he’d try to be more mindful about it in the future.

“Mm, it’s not like they’ll ever be friends again, though. The damage is already done,” Aki said, taking a sip of his tea.

“That might be why Ki isn’t showing his face,” I said quietly.

“What, do you think he’s suddenly become a sadist? I love Rou, but Ki definitely is definitely the calmer half of the two.” Aki said.

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “Well. Maybe a little? Not the way you’re thinking.” Aki snickered and I frowned at him. “I mean, look at Sharky. She betrayed Asuka and Anubis to fight with us, and even she was too tempted by memories. She held off a little while, but I think that’s because she was aware at how risky taking our memories would be, especially when she was weak. But Maneki said Ki is strong. He might be worried that if he sees us, and he thinks he can beat us, he’ll do that and take our memories, despite his feelings.”

Aki made a thoughtful noise. “He probably is strong... Anubis was really strong, way too strong for a single colored ReMare, and that was just on a few of Rou and Ki’s memories.”

“Just think how much stronger it’d be from the source. And after he’s eaten other memories,” I said, and it felt like the storm outside was finding a way inside, despite the panes of glass and walls in the way.

“We’ll end up with another High ReMare,” Aki said, and the words hung in the air like storm clouds.

The waitress brought our food, placing it in front of us. “Enjoy your meal. Take your time…” She trailed off when she noticed the atmosphere, and backed away slowly to leave us to eat.

I stuffed a couple of fries in my mouth. It tasted like salted cardboard. I made a face, struggling against the urge to spit them right out. Akito laughed, dispelling some of the gloom. “I was wondering if you were suddenly feeling better, despite everything.”

“Well, I don’t,” I said, and swallowed the fries. “Dammit, now it’ll go to waste. You could have warned me, Aki.”

“I could have,” he agreed, “But then if they did actually taste good, you’d be missing out, now wouldn’t you?” He started eating his own meal, clearly enjoying it.

I made an attempt. If anything, just because the food was warm and I was starting to shiver from wearing wet clothes. None of it was good, and I hated that. To distract myself, I asked the waitress to turn on the radio to my station, just to see what the progress was.

Nisei was reporting with Oscar.

We both stared up at the speakers when we heard his voice. “That little shit!” Akito said, slowly turning his face to meet my gaze.

“So the silver crane wasn't leading to him,” I said.

“Unless he raced over there.”

“In this weather?” The wind howled, and the torrential downpour showed no signs of stopping. “From the other side of town?”

“I don’t know. He can go into the Under, though. Maybe there’s a short cut,” Aki said, clenching his pair device in his hand. “We should go. Let’s go.”

“It’s still dangerous out,” I said, shaking my head. “I know we need to get to him, but if he’s still willing to show up to the station, then we’ll get him another time. I’m not even sure going after him should be our next move anymore.”

“Then what?” Aki asked, crossing his arms.

“We need to go after whatever is causing the weather center to not notice a huge storm like this,” I said, looking at my own pair device as I spoke, “Or…” I showed him my screen, “Whatever this is actually tracking. It’s still going to the edge of town.”

“Right… You’re right. So… It’s not him,” Akito trailed off.

“No,” I said, shaking my head, “Unless he can be in two places at once.”

“I don’t think so,” Aki said, shaking his head. He stole some of my fries, and I just pushed the entire plate to him. “Thanks. So which place do you think should be first?”

I thought about it, “Definitely the weather one. It seems more dangerous to let it continue.” Akito nodded in agreement. In the end, Akito ate half of the French fries, and almost a third of my omelet rice, explaining that he still got really hungry from transforming. I may have sworn at him a little bit for rubbing that in my face. Just a little.

As soon as the rain broke, we thanked the waitress and headed out. The air still felt heavy with rain, but at least it didn’t feel like we were in danger of being blown off course. We headed straight to the weather center, which was in the same building as the local TV station. I had been there a few times for work. It was a big building in a different neighborhood than the radio station near Kamitori. It was a weird looking building. Half of it looked like a concrete dome, and the other half looked like a shiny glass building was trying to consume the dome. It was almost as if the builders forgot what they were building halfway through, which wouldn’t surprise me at this point. I had been told on a previous trip, however, that it was entirely intentional, and the architect who built it had also designed a weird tower of pod-like apartments in Tenjin.

I flashed a press ID at the door guard, and he nodded. “I’ve got something to discuss with the weather institute,” I explained.

“Of course. Third floor. Though they might be in a meeting. The producer was mad,” the guard said hushed, like he might also earn the producer's ire.

“Yeah, I’ll bet. My boss is pretty mad too,” I said, commiserating, although I didn’t know that for sure. I certainly was mad. “This guy’s with me,” I said, gesturing vaguely at Aki.

“Isn’t he that senator’s kid who quit being a doctor?” The guard asked, surprised.

“Yes, that’s me,” Akito said cheerfully, but with such a dark expression that I shuddered, and the guard took a step back, apologizing.

“Aki-kun, let’s go. Don’t worry about it,” I said soothingly, taking his hand and half dragging him along behind me. By the time I had gotten him to the elevator he had calmed down. “What was that all about?”

“What was what about?” he asked, feigning innocence. I let it drop, and we reached the floor with the weather institute. The lobby was a formal affair of red and cream, but the secretary wasn’t there at the desk. I looked around for a moment, and found the door I wanted.

Inside it was a crowded office space, with maps and computers all over the place. It was more of a mess than usual, like people had been scrambling recently. It was quiet now, although I could see a light on in the back office.

The person I was looking for was there though. She was sitting at a computer, intensely invested in some simulations. “Excuse me,” I called out. “Sorry for barging in!”

She looked up sharply, and sighed and slumped into her seat when she saw who it was. “Let me guess,” she groaned. “You’re here to chew us out too. Well, wait your turn. The producer is letting the others have it now. It’s so stupid. We’ve got all of the calculations. It was obvious. I don’t know why it didn’t get passed on to anyone.”

“Jewel-chan, I don’t think it’s your fault,” I said gently. She had gone to college with me, and she was my contact at the station. I know it might sound like she's half Japanese or foreign, but her parents just happened to like unusual names.

“Sure, and we didn’t just have a freak typhoon,” she said rolling her eyes. “Who’s your friend?”

“This is Meiaki Akito. Aki, this is Nishinoya Jewel,” I said. Akito bowed slightly, half distracted by his vigilance against a potential ReMare.

Jewel stood up and walked over to bow to Aki. This actually got his attention. “Dang, you’re tiny,” Aki said, surprised. She was a good five inches shorter than him, and he wasn’t exactly tall either.

“Your rudeness is excused,” she said simply, and turned to me. Akito looked stunned. “What did you want then?”

“You heard about all the ReMare stuff, right?” I asked. She nodded. “Well, I’m pretty sure that’s to blame for the forecast not predicting this.”

“Ohhh. So you’re trying to scoop the station on our own turf then?” she asked, putting her hands on her hips and glaring up at me.

I waved my hands in front of me. “No, no! Of course not! I can fix it, I think.”

Jewel stared at me for a long moment, “The guys downstairs were saying that they think you might be Year.”

“It’s not like it’s a very well-kept secret,” Akito said.

“Shush,” I said to him, “They’re right. Can you show me the broadcasting studio?”

She nodded and led the way to another room. Inside there were cameras and other equipment, and a small stage with a big green screen. “This is where the magic happens,” she said waving a hand at the room.

“Cool,” I said, and headed towards the green screen. “Gonna do a super important forecast! Better let everyone know there’s going to be a tornado!” I said, stepping onto the stage.

“What?!” Jewel objected, scrambling after me. Aki laughed, and caught her by the shoulder.

“Sorry. Let’s just see if this works, alright?” he said, grinning and letting her go. She glared up at him and crossed her arms, watching me take the stage.

“So, after today’s totally surprise typhoon, the worst is happening! There’s going to be potential tornadoes all up and down this area! What is the world coming to,” I said loudly, looking around carefully. “We better tell everyone!”

“Oooh, really?” said an incredibly deep voice, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. Oozing out of a cabinet was a massive ReMare. He had a bright green head, but otherwise, his body was armored black ink. He had so many legs. I shuddered. Most of the other ReMares looked at least sort of humanoid, despite having animal features, but this one was just a horrifyingly huge centipede.

“Holy shit,” Jewel squeaked.

“And here’s where you step out and let the big kids take care of it,” Akito said, gently steering her out the door. She sputtered half in indignation and half in fear, but when Akito shut the door she didn't try to get back in. He grinned at me, “Let’s dance!” He took out his driver and placed it against his waist. “Henshin!”

“You got it,” I said, attempting to grin back but it came out as a grimace. I felt like I was going to throw up, despite not having eaten in a long time. “Henshin!” I said, swiping the orange Memoka across the Time Driver before placing it on my waist. Flames of orange light surrounded me, and I transformed into Obon. Fall stepped forward, summoning a glaive.

The centipede recoiled, rearing back so that his flat head was at eye level. “You! You’re… Those guys!” he said, as if he didn’t actually know who we were. “Why are you here?”

“Hm, I dunno, maybe because you made the local news forget to tell everyone about the typhoon that's hitting the city?” Fall said, pointing a finger at him. “Did you think you'd get away with this? We protect this city!” He slashed at the air with his glaive and made a cool pose.

“Also, centipedes are the worst!” I said, shakily shifting to a fighting stance.

“Is that so…” The centipede rumbled, and slowly unfurled his long body, wrapping itself around the entire room.

“Yup!” I said, surprised at how high pitched my own voice sounded. Centipedes were definitely the worst. I remembered one time in high school one had fallen from the ceiling onto my uniform. I had left the room in tears, and managed to fling it off in the bathroom, where one of the teachers found and killed it afterwards. I skipped the rest of the day. The next day some of the boys had teased me, saying that I was a girl after all. Meiko had stepped in before I made it a fight, and had stared them down and asked if they wanted a centipede on their shirt. No one was eager to take up that offer.

I took a deep breath and summoned my courage in a mighty yell, running forward towards the massive bug monster. I punched it squarely in the chest, but instead of squelching unpleasantly, it felt like hitting a brick wall. I stumbled back and shook out my hand. “Ow!”

“Nice try, but I’m not soft like the others!” It rumbled, and snapped its mandibles in my face. I ducked out of the way gracefully and retreated towards the center of the room. He tried to follow me, but suddenly, Fall was in the way, glaive pointing at the monster's green head. He stopped in just enough time to avoid being impaled.

“Then try this!” Fall said, and slashed the centipede with the glaive. The ReMare screeched and reared back as a bronze scar appeared across his face.

“I can’t believe you cut my beautiful face!” the ReMare wailed.

“Not so tough after all, bug,” Fall taunted, brandishing his glaive.

He shook his head and some of the black armor from lower in his body shifted to cover the scar. “It won’t work again!”

“Prism charge complete!” My belt chimed, and I drew the Memoka. It announced the Prism Fans, and I split it into two blazing orange fans.

I caught Fall's gaze, and then tilted my helmet to how the centipede had weaved under himself to chase after me. Fall nodded, and I slashed the air with my fans, trying to psych myself up. “It doesn’t have to work again,” I said, dashing forward and slashing at the exposed part of the ReMare's segmented body. He rumbled and chased after me. Fall managed to slice at one of his many legs, drawing his attention. It left left me an opening to attack the monstrous bug. Neither of us could do much damage through the armor, but the centipede followed us as we dashed and dodged around the room.

“Hold still!” the ReMare ordered in frustration. He lunged at me, snapping mandibles.

I want very much to say I stood there, unperturbed, and let him snap futilely inches away from my face, trusting that our plan had worked. But I couldn’t. I flinched back, blocking my helmeted head with my glowing fans. I heard the centipede’s deep cursing, and Fall’s jubilant laughter, and peeked out from hiding. The centipede had made a tangled mess of himself, and he struggled to regain his mobility. “Ha!” I said, putting my hands on my hips. “Serves you right, you creep!”

“This is… Well… Dang!” the ReMare complained, pushing against his own armor futilely. “Kade-chan! Help me!” he called out, and I glanced at Fall. There was a skittering sound as another ReMare appeared from under the doorway of what looked to be a storage closet.

“Mu-kun, what mess did you get yourself into this time?” she said with a soft, scolding voice. Kade was identical to the first centipede ReMare, except she had a dark red head, like a real mukade centipede.

“No way,” I said, slumping my shoulders.

The first centipede noticed my look, and clicked his mandibles. I could have sworn he was laughing. “Did you forget? Mukade travel in pairs.”

 

 


	23. Pairs

“Oh no. Oh no,” I repeated to myself over and over. “This… this is a nightmare, right?” I backed up to Fall, who summoned his second glaive and combined them, staring at our two adversaries.

“At least they’re not High ReMares?” Fall said, cheerfully. I didn’t respond aside from tilting my head and looking at him like he was an idiot. “No, no. You’re right. This is the worst. There was a girl in high school that had one fall on her during our math class and I thought _that_ was bad…”

“THAT WAS ME, YOU ASS!” I snapped.

“Oh, shit,” Fall said, stepping back in surprise.

“Kade-chan, look at what they’ve done to meeee,” Mu complained, waving his forelegs helplessly at the second centipede monster.

“Mu-kun. You can turn into ink,” Kade said, annoyed. “Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten!”

Mu froze, and then slowly lowered its forelegs. “Oh.”

“You did! You totally did! Oh man, what am I going to tell the others? I’m so embarrassed!” Kade said, hitting her head against the wall in shame.

“Yeah, well… Shut up!” Mu said, and melted into a puddle. Nearly as soon as he did, he rose out of the ink, reforming as a massive centipede again. “We defeat these guys, and do you know how happy those big guys will be? No one will care if I forgot!”

Kade clicked her mandibles thoughtfully, “This is true. It’s been a while since we’ve been in favor. At least not since the hospital thing.”

“See! I did good!” Mu said, waving his legs excitedly.

“Yes. Now, let's see what they have inside their crunchy shells,” Kade said, looming menacingly.

I took a step back, wishing that I could also melt into the ground and disappear.

“Let’s go,” Fall said, and grabbed my arm. He dashed towards the door, and crashed into it, bursting through. Jewel was back at her workstation, having forgotten we had even come. She stared in shock as Fall dragged me through the room, followed shortly by two massive centipedes that fairly exploded out of the door frame. They ignored her to chase after us.

“Shit, shit, shit,” Fall chanted, dodging desks and bursting out of the room into the lobby. He looked around desperately and found the stairwell. “Come on, ya bastards!” He called back, and shoved me first into the stairwell. “Go!”

I could hear them slam against the door as he shut it and I froze, hands gripping the rail like the stairs would break if I let go. “Fall, Fall, I can’t… I can’t do this,” I said, panicking. They slammed against the door again, and I whimpered. “There's no space, I can't.” I was babbling and couldn't stop, but the idea of being stuck in the narrow stairwell with the two centipedes was way too much.

I felt a heavy hand on my shoulder. “It'll be okay. I'm here, too. Don't worry,” Fall said, soothingly despite the own urgency in his voice. He grabbed the pink Memoka out of my belt and handed it to me. “Get out of here. Leave it to me!” Fall stamped his Driver again.

“Deep Fall!” it announced. Two sigils passed over him, and his armor changed. His duel ended glaive became two dark swords.

He stood in the doorway of the stairwell, a wall between me and the centipedes. “Go! I’m not going to be far behind!”

I nodded weakly and swiped Sakura across the Time Driver. I started running before the transformation was complete, trailing bright pink petals of light as my armor changed. I felt my speed increase as I barreled down the stairs. I heard Deep Fall yell angrily, and the sounds of a scuffle. I crashed into the wall at the end of one level of stairs and heard Deep Fall shout “Abracadabra!” And he appeared one level above me, swords crossed and ready to attack again.

I swore and continued down, recklessly charging as fast as I could. A few more floors down and Deep Fall reappeared behind me again, breathing hard. I hesitated. “Are you okay?” I asked. I could hear the skittering of the ReMares’ many…many feet getting closer.

“I’m fine! Keep going!” Deep Fall said, gesturing away roughly.

I felt guilty, but I kept going. Finally, I barreled through the door on the ground floor. I could feel Sakura starting to power down. “No, not yet, not yet!” I said, fumbling for Rain. I swiped it as I continued to run, and my armor changed colors as I was showered with sky blue light. I dashed out the front door of the Media Building and into the parking lot. I stopped to catch my breath. Deep Fall appeared at the door, and ran over to me.

“I know you’re scared, but I hope you’re ready,” he said, shifting to a defensive pose. “We still gotta beat them.”

I took a deep breath and drew my Prism Whip. “I can do it.” I wasn’t sure I could, but at least we were no longer stuck in a room that was forty percent nightmare centipedes.

“Good, cause here they come!” Deep Fall said, as the two ReMares burst from the doors and skittered around, nearly surrounding us.

“Mu-kun, they stopped running,” Kade said in a voice like a cat’s purr.

“Maybe they’re too tired, Kade-chan,” Mu rumbled back.

“I think they’re actually afraid, Mu-kun,” Kade said, lashing out towards me. I yelped and stumbled back, and she laughed.

“I think you’re right, Kade-chan,” Mu said, lashing out at Deep Fall.

Deep Fall crossed his swords and slashed at Mu’s throat. It scraped across armor, but it managed to dig in enough that Mu reeled back. “Don’t be so cocky. We've taken out trash stronger than you.”

“Oh, that’s rude!” Kade said, thrashing a little. I couldn’t stand it. I lashed out, attacking wildly with the whip. She wasn’t expecting it and the whip wrapped around one of her legs. She turned her head, and stared at me. I stared back, horrified for a moment. Then I pulled sharply, and the whip of light burned through Kade’s armored legs. She screeched and wiggled furiously. I hit the red centipede with the whip again and again, trying to keep her from getting too close.

Deep Fall was climbing up Mu’s back, using his swords to wedge in points between Mu’s armor to keep him balanced and on the green centipede’s back despite the ReMare's thrashing.

Kade noticed Mu’s trouble, and abandoned me to rush at Deep Fall. She attempted to knock him off of her partner. Deep Fall lost hold of one of his swords, swinging precariously on one sword embedded in Mu’s back. I swore and charged. I dodged in and out, avoiding both centipedes thrashing. I struck Kade with my whip again, and this time it wrapped around her slender armored body. I pulled, running away from Mu and Kade, as Deep Fall desperately reached to grab his other sword.

Kade’s armor cracked, splintering with blue light. Suddenly I was in the crowded office. Everyone was working and chatting. Jewel was on the phone. “Hi Meiki-chan! Yep, I’m making tomorrow’s forecast right now, to send to you-“ She shuddered as Kade ran across her feet under the desk. “I’ll… Yup. Bye,” she said, and then started making a new forecast, ignoring the one with the typhoon predictions. She hit send after making a normal, sunny forecast. The memory ended. I kept pulling, trying not to think about the centipedes, trying not to think of Deep Fall's precarious position on Mu's back. Kade screamed. The armor shattered, and the whip burned into her softer inky insides. I released the whip and put the Memoka back into the Driver.

“Vanishing Point!” The belt announced, and I jumped up into the air. Blue light shimmered around me as I came crashing down at Kade, foot first into the spot where I had broken Kade’s armor. I landed in a splash of ink as its body dissolved. A red globe of light floated up from the ink. I reached out and grabbed it.

It felt warm in my hand. “Got you,” I said, sighing in relief. One centipede down. I heard Deep Fall yell. I looked up. Mu was not taking the defeat of Kade very well. He smashed up against the building, knocking Deep Fall off. He was falling. I started running, but there was no way I was going to make it.

“Abracadabra!” He shouted desperately, and a sigil appeared on the ground beneath him. Instead of splatting into the cement, he vanished in a flash of bronze light, and he reappeared next to me. “That was a little too close,” he said, running a hand against the side of his helmet.

“Careful,” I said, putting a world of feeling into it. I did not want to lose him. And I especially did not want to lose him when there was still a massive angry centipede bound and determined to eat us. “Let’s get Mu before he wrecks everything.”

“Right-o, kiddo,” Deep Fall said, giving me a salute, before ducking as Mu whipped his tail end at us. I ducked too, and as it passed over us, I drew my Yellow Memoka and swiped it across my Time Driver. I transformed into Star with a flurry of shooting stars.

I drew the Prism Staff, and with a deep breath, jumped onto Mu’s back. I struggled to stay put, as Deep Fall drew Mu’s attention from the ground. I found a small glowing scar where Deep Fall had penetrated Mu’s defenses, and aimed my staff there. I thrust down hard, burying the staff deep into Mu’s carapace. Mu responded by thrashing violently, and I desperately held on, trying to use my weight to pry off some of the giant centipede’s armor.

Everything was suddenly still, and I was back in the little recording studio of the weather institute. Mu and Kade were skittering over the stage and green screen while a half terrified weather reporter directed the camera’s attention to a low front.

Mu scooped up Deep Fall, grabbing onto his cape with several of his skittery legs. He took Deep Fall’s swords and tossed them away. Deep Fall struggled, but his kicks landed ineffectively on Mu’s armor. Mu passed him up the length of his many legs, straight towards the inky mandibles.

I swore, and made a deliberate swing on my staff, launching myself further up the centipede’s back. I scrambled to grab onto Mu's armor, and jumped again, landing on his bright green head, just as Mu got Deep Fall in between its powerful pincers. Deep Fall yelled as his armor made an unsettling crunch. “Aki! No!” I yelled, desperately pulling at one of the pincers. It gave way a little, just enough to keep Deep Fall from being crushed, but not enough to free him. He struggled, trying to push against the mandibles gripping him. His belt made a powering down noise and suddenly he was back to regular Fall, and his struggling became weaker. He yelled, and I threw more of my weight into pulling the mandible away from him.

I heard a familiar scream, and I glanced back down at the ground. Summer was running to the scene. He ran up the back of the centipede like it was just a grassy hill and not a squirming giant bug monster. Summer reached us at the top, and saw me struggling to free Fall. Summer snarled and grabbed the other mandible. With a mighty pull, our combined strength was enough to pull open the ReMare's jaws. Fall fell, his armor disappearing. I dove after him, my body moving automatically. I caught Aki midair, and hit the building squarely on my feet, bouncing off it and back to the ground.

“Fuck centipedes,” Aki muttered, as I set him down gently.

“They’re the worst,” I agreed.

“That was pretty brave,” he said.

“And stupid.” I agreed. “Just a second. I gotta finish exterminating this punk.” I switched my transformation quickly into Year. I could see Summer running back down Mu’s back as Mu roared into the sky about its injured mandible. If I didn’t hurry, Summer would take my Star Memoka.

I jumped up, and my belt chimed “Vanishing Point!” again, and I flew down at the spot where my staff was embedded into Mu. My foot made contact, and for a brief moment, I was terrified that it wasn’t going to work, that its armor wasn’t weakened enough. Then there was a sharp crack, and the armor splintered. Mu dissolved into a puddle of ink and a green orb of light rose up. My staff clattered to the ground, and I scrambled to grab it, glaring at Summer, who had started moving towards me. He snarled, and dashed off in the other direction, grabbing the green orb instead.

“Wait!” I said, running after him. He tilted his head and stared at me as he placed the orb onto his Driver. Heavy plates of green armor appeared on his arms, and he roared at me. His bright summer colors were starting to look like he had rolled in camouflage paint, with the streaks of green, silver, and brown.

Aki stood up, and walked towards Summer. “Bro. Thanks for saving me.”

Summer stared at him for a long moment.

“What are you doing? Are you helping Ki? Can we help you?” Aki said, still walking closer. “We don’t want to fight with you, bro. But if you don’t tell us what you’re planning, we might have to. I’m warning you, okay?”

Summer stared at him a moment longer, and then turned and dropped into the Under.

I sighed and erased my Driver. “Erase, Bye Bye!” it chimed, and my armor disappeared.

“Thank god that’s over,” I said, slumping my shoulders. It was an effort to stay upright.

“Here, here,” Aki said. “We still don’t know what his deal is though.”

“At least he didn’t take any of my Memokas this time. Or this one,” I said, holding up Kade’s red orb of light.

Aki nodded, and walked over to put an arm around my shoulders. “Good job. Although I’m really not sure I want Jiro to make up a centipede origami.”

“No, I’d rather pass on that one too,” I said. “Let’s go see if the lab has power yet. I think we’ll have to go after the silver crane another time.”

Just then my phone rang. It was a generic ringtone, so I answered politely, “Hello? This is Kimura Mei.”

“Meiki-chan, what the hell was that?” Jewel's voice exploded out of the phone. I held it away from my ear.

When I felt like she might not continue shouting my ear off, I tentatively brought it back to my face. “Jewel-chan, it was a ReMare. Like what I talked about on my radio show? It was interfering with your forecasts.”

“I see that now! Jeeze!”

“Well, they’re gone now. Do you need us to come back up there and help clean up or anything?” I asked. I wasn’t sure if we had broken anything as we escaped the building.

“No, no,” she said, calming down a little. “We’re going to have another meeting, now that the chewing out meeting is kinda null and void. I think everyone is just… really confused about how we managed to tolerate two giant nasty monsters in the work space without noticing it?”

“They eat memories, so they can be hard to notice,” I explained. “It might have seemed like a normal day after they took your memories.”

“Well, whatever. I think we’re going drinking tonight after all that. Do you wanna come with? Your tiny boyfriend can come too,” Jewel said.

I glanced over at Aki, who could hear, as he was still draped across my shoulders. He made a face. “Who are you calling short, you peanut?” Aki retorted.

“Shhh,” I hissed, and pushed him away, “Sorry about that. We’ve got to do end of mission stuff. Another time though, okay? I need it after that.” I shuddered, thinking about the sinewy way they skittered around. Nothing ought to have that many legs.

“Alright. Later! Say hi to Meiko-chan for me!” Jewel said, before hanging up.

Akito was grinning at me.

“What?” I asked, pocketing my phone.

“I thought you’d say, ‘haha, he’s not my boyfriend!’ and you totally didn’t!” Aki said, attempting to mimic my voice very poorly. “I should tell Meiko.”

“You know what she’s going to say?” I said, raising an eye brow at him, and made my voice quiet and cute, “I already gave you permission to marry, why are you bothering me again?”

“Dang, that’s actually pretty close,” Aki said, surprised.

“I make a living off of my voice. I am a pro, remember?” I asked, heading back over to my Synchrocycle.

“Yeah, I remember,” Akito said, following me.

“Besides, when have I ever objected? I like you,” I said, “And Meiko likes you.”

“She really isn’t worried at all, is she?”

“Why would she be? After everything we’ve been through together, why would a dumb boy that we’re both fond of mess that up?” I said. “Or at least, that’s what she said.”

“I’m not sure I’m more offended or happy about that,” Aki said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Probably happy, if I know her,” I said, flashing him a smile.

“So, then you do consider me to be your boyfriend?” Aki asked, leaning against me like gravity was suddenly really heavy.

“Walk for yourself, Aki!” I said laughing and gently shifting him so he wasn't putting all of his weight on me. I knew he was hurt, but I wasn't exactly steady on my feet either. “I'm not sure, are you going to be insufferable about it?” I glanced over at him, and he had the stupidest grin across his face. I could already guess the answer to that one, so I changed tactics. “It sounded like you and Rou were sort of a thing.”

Aki made a face that made me think he had bit a lemon and was almost enjoying the sour burn. “Probably?” He shrugged, and continued as if there were landmines. “Jiro is… Complicated. I love him, of course.” He looked thoughtful for a moment, and then shook his head, “I wish I remembered more.”

“We’ve got a lot more to do,” I said by way of agreement.

“Like taking that light home before a certain bratty little brother decides to show up and fight some more,” Aki said, straddling his Harvester. “You’ve got some color back in your face, so let’s get going.”

I felt a rush of fondness when I realized he had started that whole conversation to keep my mind off of the creepy crawlies, and it had totally worked. “Yeah, thanks. Thanks for everything today.”

He waved it off as if it was nothing, and we returned back to Kamitori.

It was a mess. There were branches down everywhere, and vast puddles on the sides of the roads. The lights still seemed to be out, but luckily there didn’t seem to be any serious damage.

It was dark in the lab. The only light came filtering through the window. Meiko was asleep, leaning against Rou’s shoulder on the couch. Rou had a notebook and was writing. “Hey, my adorable little nerds! The task force has returned!” Aki said, sweeping into the room as if he was a returning hero. I suppose he technically was, but he made it silly.

Rou looked up at him. “Welcome back. Glad you’re okay.”

“Yup! We only fought two giant centipedes, no big deal,” Aki shrugged, plopping down next to Meiko. “But we have saved TV!”

“Shh, she was out running around in the rain, trying to get people to go inside,” Rou said, his eyes darting down to Meiko.

“I’m surprised you didn’t take up Aki’s offer to use the generator,” I said, sitting on the coffee table across from them.

“We did. Down the street, there’s a clinic. They needed it,” Rou said.

“Awa, I’m so proud of you,” Aki said, reaching over Meiko’s head to ruffle Rou’s hair.

“Whatever,” he said, looking away. “I’m working on some designs anyway.”

“We brought this back, Rou,” I said, handing over the red light. “Summer got away with the green one though.”

“Please don’t turn it into a paper centipede, Jiro,” Aki said lightly. “Meiki doesn’t like them.”

“I can't turn it into a Memoka at this point, and spirits don't usually take well to origami that doesn't match their-” Rou started, but he saw my face and nodded, “I’ll try.”

“I wonder if we could use it to bribe Nisei out,” I said slowly.

“And let him get stronger?” Rou asked. “We’ve got other things we need to do.”

“You might be right,” I said, although I thought it could help accomplish those things too.

“We think we found something that Ki wants us to find!” Aki said, holding out the silver crane that I had made earlier.

“Is that from Ki too?” Rou said, sitting up straighter, and attempting to grab at the crane. Meiko grumbled in protest.

“No, I made it,” I said, and his face fell. “But let Aki explain. It might even make sense. Sort of.”

Aki explained what he had told me earlier about thinking that the pink crane origami combined with the holiday and the Memoka stolen was another message on top of the memory that Ki had attached to the origami, and that maybe using a silver crane origami would allow us to find Nisei easier.

“But Silver wasn’t a crane,” Rou said, thoughtful.

“That’s what I said.” I smirked at Aki, who stuck his tongue out at me.

“No, but it was still a bird! Besides, we realized when Nisei was on the radio and the Pair Device was still showing someplace off on the other side of town that it wasn’t leading directly to him. I was thinking it might be another ReMare that might be able to pass us another message, or something.”

“Or it might be a way to remake the Silver Memoka without taking it back from Nisei,” Rou said.

“Oh! Good point!” Aki said.

“It might be. But how was Ki going to know that that was the particular Memoka I was going to use and that Summer would take it?” I said, “He would have had to have been watching and put it on the shell just as it happened.”

“That’s not impossible,” Rou said. “His core color is pink, and that's always fast and stealthy.”

“It's also exactly the kind of convoluted nonsense Ki would pull,” Aki added.

Rou shrugged by way of agreement. “It might be.”

“Whatever the case is, I think we should go chase down this bird,” Aki said, when his previous comment failed to get a rise out of Rou.

“Not yet. You’re acting like you’re fine again, but you nearly got crushed,” I said, poking at his side.

Aki gave me another complicated sour face. “I’m fiiiiine.”

“I don't want you to end up in the hospital again, Aki. I need my comrades by my side, not in traction, thanks,” I said, poking him again.

Aki swatted my hand away and glanced at Rou, who nodded. “She’s the boss.”

“No fair,” Aki grumbled. “I miss being the sensible senpai.”

“Then be sensible, Akito,” I said, grinning.

“I can handle myself. I know my limits,” Aki objected. “I won’t fight if I don’t think it’s worth the risk!”

“There’s a difference between taking a risk and being reckless, Aki Aki,” Meiko muttered, slowly opening her eyes. “You might know to hang back if you don’t think it’s worth it, but you don’t know where to stop when it is.”

Aki startled, and leaned away from her, as if she was a small animal popping out of her den right next to him. He seemed like he was at a loss for words for a moment. In a spectacular dodge, he tattled on me instead. “Meiki didn’t object when her little tiny weather friend said I was her boyfriend!”

Meiko fixed him with a level look, and said nothing. Aki went from grinning to squirming pretty quickly. Finally Meiko spoke, “So? Aren’t you getting married?”

Aki and I both started laughing, as it was almost exactly what I had predicted earlier. “See, I told you!” I said, slapping my knee.

Meiko rolled her eyes, and exchanged a glance with Rou, “You’re both as mature as grape juice.”

“You love uuuuus,” Aki crowed, and Meiko punched him in the shoulder. “Ow! Meanie!” Meiko stood up to go into the kitchen. “Everything’s off!” he called after her, and she froze at the doorway for a moment. She gave him a surprisingly rude gesture and poured herself a glass of tea out of a big two liter bottle that was sitting on the counter.

I stood up and walked over to her. “Sorry,” I said quietly.

She shrugged and poured me a glass of tea too.

Aki took that moment to lean against Rou. “Are you going to want to come with us? When we go after the crane, I mean.”

“You know I do,” Rou said.

“I was worried about that,” Aki said quietly. “Maybe the boss is right. We’ll wait until I’m fighting fit again.”

“Shut it. I can take care of myself,” Rou said, returning his attention to his notebook.

“Sure. But stuff works out better if we take care of each other, yeah?” Aki said. Rou just grunted and didn’t comment.

“I told you before, I don’t care if it’s them,” Meiko said, handing me the glass of tea. “I'm a little surprised it took this long, if I'm honest.”

“I know. I meant for being as mature as grape juice,” I said, smiling a little. “I did tell him not to be insufferable about it.”

“That's nothing new,” Meiko said, smiling back. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Did you figure out anything about that message?” I asked, “With all the numbers?”

“I think so,” Meiko said, glancing over at Rou, who was resolutely ignoring Aki leaning against him. “Rou?”

He glanced up. “What?”

“About the equation?” she asked.

“Oh. It’s actually the sigil for Winter,” Rou said, surprised. “I can’t show you right now, my laptop battery is too low, but if you put it into the program he developed, it plots the sigil on a graph. I think it is how the secondary Drivers work. They trap energy into that shape and it allows you guys to transform.”

“That doesn’t actually sound very helpful, if it’s for Winter,” I said, disappointed and a bit confused. Computers and math were not my strong suit.

“Well, not on its own,” Rou said wryly, “But I was thinking we’d have to use origami and Memokas to make it work, but if I can figure out the right equation to make Spring’s sigil, it should be easy after that.”

“Isn’t that what you’ve been doing the past month?” Aki asked.

“No, we weren’t sure how the program really worked, so we were struggling to figure out what to put into it. Now that we have a good example, we should be able to figure it out,” Rou explained.

“So, it shouldn’t be much longer, then?” I asked eagerly. I was tired of working alone at the radio station.

“I think so,” Rou said and then continued as if he had read my mind. “Meiko should be able to go back to work this week. We talked about it and if she gets fired, Meiki is probably in trouble too, so she’d do the most good there for now.”

“Okuda-san has been worried about ratings lately,” I said feeling a little guilty, “I’ve been trying my best but…”

“People listen to our show for the Mei Brigade. If it’s just one person it doesn’t work as well,” Meiko said reasonably.

“Right,” I said agreeably. “I wonder sometimes though… If it might be easier if we just… quit.” My friends looked up at me, surprised. “I love my job, but… we’ve had to be absent a lot for attacks or for injuries. And it’s not like I need money to eat,” I said trying to make my tone light instead of bitter.

“What, and just move in here?” Aki asked, raising his eyebrows. “I’ve already got one free loader, thanks.”

Rou shot him a glare, “More importantly, it’s good to have at least one source of media we can count on, considering what happened with the weather institute at the TV station. I can’t trust that another ReMare isn’t messing with other departments there. And I’ve told you before that we use your station to figure out some of the movements of ReMares.”

“Okuda-san understands. She’s seen you in action. The worst she’ll do is put you to work filing papers and doing other background work instead of appearing live on air,” Meiko said.

“Yeah, but what about you?” I asked.

“I still need to eat, thanks,” Meiko said dryly.

“No, I mean, she doesn’t know you’re involved. Why is she being so lenient about your absences?” I asked.

“Well, first of all, I’ve got vacation time. And second, do you really thing anybody who knows us thinks I’m not involved? Really?” She raised her eyebrows and took a sip of tea.

“She’s got you there,” Aki agreed, “Even if they don’t realize she’s Winter, it’d be pretty easy to guess that she’s still helping you somehow.”

“Oh. I guess I was just kind of worried,” I said, fidgeting with my braid a little.

“I won’t say that it might not eventually come to that,” Rou said slowly, “But let’s take things one step at a time.”

Just then the lights flickered back on.

“Finally,” Rou said, pushing Akito aside to stand up and get his laptop.

“Fine, fine, just shove me away,” Aki spread out dramatically on the couch.

 

 


	24. Halloween

Weeks past, and Akito recovered. The oppressive heat broke, and it started to get cooler. Maple trees changed colors, but Oara is far enough south where the majority of trees blissfully ignored the changing of the seasons. The local shops were showing fall colors though. Every shop in the downtown area was decorated with cute jack-o-lanterns and witches.

I was actually surprised by how all-out everyone was going. Halloween wasn’t really a Japanese thing, but it had been gaining popularity recently.

Which is why Meiko and I were sitting in the office over her computer, trying to compile some spooky songs to play for a special Halloween music hour.

“Monster Mash, of course, but what about The Time Warp?” I asked.

“Good lord, that was a weird movie,” Meiko said, but she added it to our list anyway. Aki had hosted a movie night at Momiji Café the night before, and I had brought The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Next week we planned to show the Ring, which was one that I was fairly certain I wouldn’t like and Meiko would. For some reason she was really into horror movies. I don't really see the appeal.

“I can’t believe you didn’t like it. The music is so good,” I said. “Aki loved it.”

“Of course Aki Aki loved it,” Meiko said, rolling her eyes. “Purple People Eater?”

“Sure, why not. Tenjin 48 has a Halloween song,” I said, humming a bit of the song.

“Right. That was Howl, wasn't it?” Meiko asked.

I nodded. “Karashi Lemons has one, too. I think it was called Jack-O-Lemon.”

“Excuse me!” We both startled, and looked behind us. Nisei was standing there, looking as stiff and awkward as ever.

“Nisei-kun! We’ve been wanting to talk to you!” I said, keeping my tone friendly and light, like I didn’t want to put the spirit stealing brat in a headlock.

“I’m sorry. Not interested. Here,” he said, thrusting out a jack-o-lantern origami at me. I took it, startled. “The Haunted Park Party. Be there.” He turned to leave.

“Now, wait a second!” I said, standing up and grabbing his arm. He turned and looked down at me, and it was actually… a little intimidating. There was a powerful, wild glint to his eyes. Like he was possessed by a monster. Which… was technically true, but it wasn’t an expression I had seen on him before. “Please. We’re worried about our friend. Tell us what’s going on.”

Nisei pulled his arm away roughly. He was strong. “I don’t know anything. I’m just a messenger.”

“You’re still helping Ki, though,” Meiko said quietly.

A smile spread across his face, like poisoned butter. “Ki and Maneki. And why wouldn’t I? I’ve gotten stronger. Be there.” He walked away, bowing sharply back at us from the door.

“I’m going to go after him,” I said, standing up and started heading towards the door. Meiko grabbed my hand.

“Wait. You’ll just start a fight,” Meiko said.

“Yeah, well, maybe I want to,” I said, glaring at the spot where he had bowed. “That punk!”

“Calm down.” Meiko said.

“But he said-“

“Shush. We know what he said. But we don’t know what’s going on. Ki and Maneki have a history of trying to outsmart each other. Even if it looks like they’re working together, Ki might be trying to keep Nisei safe and mess up Maneki at the same time,” Meiki explained. Her eyebrows were furrowed and her soft brown eyes were intense.

The tension went out of me, like a balloon deflating. She was right. “It just feels like a trap, knowing she’s involved.”

“I’m sure it is. But it’s a gamble for her too, trusting Ki and Nisei,” Meiki said, letting go of my hand and turning back to her computer. “We should make sure we add This is Halloween, from the Nightmare Before Christmas, too.”

I stared at her for a moment before sitting down, “Yeah, you’re right.”

After work we went to Momiji Café. It was busy, and Aki saluted us as he headed into the kitchen. Apparently his café always had a spike in popularity around autumn. And it was easy to see why. Momiji Café was a bounty of autumnal joy. He had decorated for Halloween, more than the other cafés around Kamitori, and he had a special menu just for fall. He had tons of hearty seasonal food artfully designed. There was a hamburger steak covered in cheddar cheese with triangles cut out to make it look like a jack-o-lantern, and cream stew with bits of seaweed on top cut to look like cute little eyes and a spooky ghost’s mouth. And he had sweet potato cookies and real pumpkin pie, the recipe given to him by an American friend. Everything looked like it tasted amazing.

I hated him for it a little.

“Rou is going to worry,” Meiko said, hanging back a little.

“I know, but he'll be mad if we don't tell them that we have another clue,” I said, leading the way into the kitchen. “Aki, do you have a minute?” I said, holding up the origami pumpkin.

“You can’t just come back here whenever,” Aki hissed, taking a cake out of the oven. He froze for a second when he saw what I was holding, “Another one?”

“Hand delivered,” I said, nodding grimly.

“From Ki?” Aki asked, incredulous and a little worried. He started taking off his apron.

“No, your brother,” I said, and he relaxed.

“Alright. I’ve got a few minutes. Let’s go upstairs,” Aki said, and stuck his head out the kitchen door. “Sona-chan! Cover for me! I’ll be right back.” I caught of glimpse of Sona, and she agreed readily enough, but when she caught my gaze she turned up her nose at me and spun around.

“Did I do something to piss her off?” I asked as we got into the elevator.

“Huh? Sona? I don’t think so?” Aki said, confused. “Did you?”

“I mean, I don’t think so?” I said, shrugging.

“Idiots,” Meiko muttered. “She’s jealous. Or maybe disapproving. I don’t know. She just sees cute girls going upstairs with her boss.”

“Ohhhhh,” Aki and I both said in unison.

“It's normal for Meiki not to get it. What’s your excuse, Aki Aki?” Meiko asked.

“She’s an employee. That’s off limits,” Aki said. “It makes it awfully hard to fire people.”

“Did I not notice someone else being jealous?” I said, horrified.

“No, sweetheart. You're just kind of a goof when it comes to relationships,” Meiko said, patting my shoulder. I wasn't sure whether or not I was comforted by that or not, but it was kind of true so I didn't argue with her. “Don’t worry. If I’m jealous, you’ll know.”

The elevator pinged open, and I was freed from that particular conversation. And thrust into another potentially thorny one. Rou had built a rough prototype of the Spring Driver, and was tinkering with it. “Rou, we’ve got another origami from Ki,” I said.

He looked up immediately, abandoning his work. “You did?”

I nodded, and explained what had happened with Nisei. “I wanted to chase him down but…”

“It wasn’t a good idea,” Meiko completed my sentence for me.

“So, he thinks he’s working with Ki and Maneki?” Aki said, making a low whistle, “That guy doesn’t really learn, does he? Maneki wouldn’t hesitate to wreck him.”

“I think Meiko is right though, about Ki trying to play Maneki,” Rou said. “It’s like him. I don’t think it’s a good idea, but he’d try it. He can't resist trying to outfox her.”

I giggled at his wordplay. “Outfox,” I echoed.

Aki ignored me. He was staring off into the distance, as if distracted by deep thoughts. “We’ll go to this party, right?”

“Yeah. Trap or not, we’ve got to protect people from getting their memories stolen,” I said.

“Theeennnn,” Aki dragged out the word, a grin spreading across his face, “We’ll need costumes!”

Meiko sighed. Rou shrugged. I could guess what they were feeling. Meiko wasn’t thrilled to be going to a party, especially one that wasn’t related to work, and Rou didn’t care as long as we were going after Ki.

“Don’t worry about it! I’ll find good ones for everyone. Unless you already have a Halloween costume?” Aki said, reigning himself back to make sure he didn't ruin anyone's fun.

“No, I don’t,” Meiko said, as I shook my head no.

“I’ve got a fox mask from the festival,” Rou said.

“That’s festival stuff, not a costume!” Aki scolded.

“Whatever. I trust you,” Rou said, going back to his computer.

“You did good with the yukata,” I said, conceding the task to him. “I’d just buy a bunch of one hundred yen shop costume stuff and throw it together.

“What? And end up wearing a samurai bald cap with cat ears?” Aki asked, sounding offended.

“Probably,” Meiko agreed.

“I would not!” I objected. I mean, one year I had been a doctor witch with a clown wig, but that was besides the point.

“If you say so. I’ve got to get back to work before Sona decides to mutiny. I’ll get costumes later. Count on me!” Aki said, before heading downstairs.

“Do you think you’ll be able to use that by the Haunted Park Party?” I asked, watching Rou fuss with the half built Driver.

“I should be able to at least test it by then,” Rou said, grinning. “It’ll be our own little trap.”

The day of the party came quickly. Aki delivered a package with my costume to me and told me to wear it to the party, and that I should keep it secret. He said that the rest of the Mei Brigade's costumes were equally secret, so I should avoid being nosy about it.

So it was by myself that I got ready. The costume was beautiful, although it made me wonder what in the world Akito was thinking. It was basically a fairy princess dress. It was white, but it had an undertone of shimmery sparkly rainbows. The skirt was knee length, but full and fluffy, with a brightly colored rainbow underskirt. There were long white gloves and white tights. There were also two large white butterfly wings. I appreciated the thought he had put into the theme and everything, but it was gaudy and not in the way I was usually gaudy. It wasn’t even that I never wore skirts. I did sometimes! But nothing quite like fluffy confection Aki had me wearing. And not when I was expecting a fight.

I felt a little silly riding the Synchrocycle to the party in a skirt, so I just slipped the Pair Device and the Time Driver into a small purse and took the bus.

The park looked completely transformed. There was an area for kids with cutesy decorations and a few people in cutesy witch costumes handing out candy and manning game stations. A foreign DJ was playing some really good music, and a group of young adults were teasing and daring each other to dance at the other end of the park. And off to one side was a massive dark tent covered in spider webs, with the words “Haunted Carnival” written on a rough wooden plank in paint that looked like blood.

“Isn’t it great?” Aki said, suddenly behind me. I startled and turned around.

“When did you get that tall?” I asked, surprised that he was only half a head shorter than me.

“High heels,” he said, showing them off. They were bright red and way taller than what I would ever feel comfortable wearing. He flashed me a peace sign and grinned. His costume was clearly inspired by the trio of handsome zombie doctors who were back up dancers in the music video for Puchi Para DX's song, RX Horror. Aki had a neon green streak in his hair and had used make up to give himself dark circles under his eyes and an unhealthy pallor. He had a bright orange net shirt under a tattered doctor’s lab coat, and tattered khaki shorts.

“You look great! But you didn't really go for practical this time, did you? You’re going to freeze. It’s not that warm anymore at night,” I said.

“Yes, mom.” Aki rolled his eyes, “I'll be fine. I expect we’ll end up in our armor soon enough. And you look amazing! I am the best, aren’t I?”

“It’s pretty,” I said, twirling the skirt a little. That part was fun, at least. “But it's also not very practical.”

“Awwa. Halloween isn't supposed to be practical.”

“Yeah, but that's not the only reason we're here,” I said, fidgeting with the skirt.

“Boo. I’ve got a pair of shorts that matches that top though, so if you want to change it up, you can,” Aki said, lifting up a large plastic jack-o-lantern that was stuffed with a few articles of clothing and a camera. “But you should show the skirt version to Meiko, at least! Pleeeease?” He batted his eyelashes at me and made his best innocent face. “I think she’ll like it.”

I eyed him suspiciously. “Alright. If you say so.”

“Come on, Jiro-kun is over here. We came together,” Aki said, pulling me over to the side. Rou was standing near a stack of pumpkins looking impossibly cool. He was dressed as a samurai, with the black hakama that he frequently wore, and a white kimono underneath. Rou had managed to wear his fox mask from the festival despite Aki’s protests.

“Rou! You look cool!” I said, and he nodded slowly, well aware of his own appearance.

“He wouldn’t let me suggest anything else,” Aki complained, “I think the vampire costume I found would have looked really dashing on him.”

“It was stuffy and uncomfortable,” Rou said sharply. “I need to be able to move in case Spring doesn’t work.”

I gave Aki a look as if to say “see?” He rolled his eyes at me. I decided to let it go, and asked Rou, “You haven’t tested it?”

“I haven’t. I was working on it until we left,” Rou said, reaching into his sleeves. “If I didn’t think Ki would show up tonight, I’d still be fine tuning it.”

“He'd work on it in his sleep if he could,” Aki said. “He works too hard. It's time to have fun! I’m going to get us tickets for the haunted house!” He strutted off to stand in line at the booth nearby.

Rou watched him go and shook his head. “He does too. He just tries harder to not look like it.”

“He wants to be the only one who’s worrying,” I said, fidgeting with my skirt.

“He’s an idiot,” Rou said agreeably, “But a good one.”

“Maybe just an idiot,” I said wryly.

Rou glanced at me and smiled, guessing the reason for my annoyance. “You look really pretty, Meiki.”

“Thanks... But I'm worried that if there's a fight, it'll be awkward,” I said, although the compliment did feel good. Rou could be stingy with praise, and when he gave it, he really meant it.

“I don’t know. Magical Girls fight like that, don’t they?” Rou said, teasing.

“Magical Girl is a TV genre, not like, real life, okay? And even if they were, they’re, you know, magical,” I said. It wasn’t entirely unappealing though. Meiko and I certainly had spent a lot of time pretending to be Pretty Guardians as little kids.

“And Kamen Rider isn’t?” Rou asked.

That stumped me for a minute. “Significantly more punching and kicking,” I said, shaking my head.

“True,” Rou chuckled. “Where’s Meiko, by the way? I thought she was going to come here with you?”

“Her parents wanted to see her costume, so she stopped there first,” I said. They had actually wanted to see both of us, but I was more worried that something would happen at the party without Year, which could become disastrous. It totally wasn’t because I was a little shy about my costume. Nope, nope, nope. Not at all. “She should be here soon though,” I added, as Aki came back, waving a handful of tickets and grinning.

“Sooner than you think,” Rou said, tilting his head towards the entrance of the park. Meiko was there, and had spotted us. She was a vision in a shimmering icy blue dress, and she had a silver tiara. Her short dark hair sparkled with tiny clear gemstones. Even her makeup was a pearly blue that made her pale skin look translucent and frozen. .

She stopped close to where we were, as if surprised to see us.

“Meiko!” I said rushing over to her to give her a hug.

She hugged me back and then held me at arm’s length to look at me. “You look like a dream,” she said quietly, her face red underneath her makeup.

I laughed, embarrassed and pleased, and not sure what to say about it. “What are you talking about? Look at you! You’re like the ice queen! It’s so beautiful and cool!”

“Mmhm.” She was still looking at me.

“Seee, what did I tell you?” Aki said, flinging an arm over my shoulder. “She likes it, doesn’t she? And you wanted to wear shorts.”

“I still want to wear the shorts,” I said, making a face at him. “I’m not here to be pretty.”

“That’s basically what I told him,” Rou said. “We’re not here to play around. We’re here to work.”

“I don’t see why it can’t be both,” Aki said, shrugging his shoulders. “But fiiiine, here.” He handed over the pumpkin with extra clothes in it. “Go change, and then we’ll go into the haunted house.” He gave Rou a dirty look. “To inspect it for ReMares, of course,” he added primly.

“Of course,” Meiko repeated, her voice soft and dreamy.

I went and changed quickly in a nearby bathroom before crossing the park again. More people were wandering around the party now, laughing and calling “Trick-or-Treat!” and “Happy Halloween!” at each other. I was surprised by the turn out. I think some of the night crowd at the radio had mentioned it, but for the most part it wasn’t covered by the station much. And there were a lot of people! Including a bunch of foreigners in amazing costumes.

“Hey! Nice costume!” A tall American guy dressed as a superhero said to me in English as I walked back to the others.

“Oh! Thank you. You too!” I replied in the same language, envying his costume a little.

“This is a pretty good Halloween party, isn’t it?” he asked, grinning. “My friends and I came all the way from Miyazaki for it!”

“Really? That’s so far away,” I said, amazed. Someone had came all that way to come to my little city. That had to have been at least a 6 hour drive or an even longer train ride. It might look close on a map, but mountains made it impossible to just drive straight here. “Why?”

“Oh, well. Good Halloween parties are hard to come by. And we heard Oara’s actually haunted! Some sort of weird ink demons or something. It sounded cool, anyway.” He shrugged.

“Ha, well… Those are actually really dangerous, so be careful,” I said, and he shivered and grinned at what he figured was a cryptic warning playing along with the joke instead of a legitimate warning. “I’m serious. Anyway, nice meeting you. I have to go.” And with that, I slipped away to rejoin my friends.

“Let’s go,” I said, pointing dramatically towards the haunted carnival tent. “I’m tired of standing around, waiting for you.”

“So sorry to keep you waiting, your highness,” Akito said sarcastically, because they definitely had been waiting for me and not the other way around.

“You’ll be complaining about the haunted house next,” Meiko muttered. “You’re not going to like it.”

“Probably not!” I agreed.

Inside the tent was simultaneously bright and dark. The walls were patterned with bright neon paint that shined under the black lights. Rou’s white kimono and the markings on his fox mask shined bright. Aki’s green hair and his shirt also glowed. Meiko’s blue dress didn’t glow at all.

“Your costume!” Aki cooed in excitement and I looked down at it. The black lights picked up the subtle colors and made my costume a bright technicolor rainbow instead of white with subtle shimmery colors.

“Ah! It’s pretty!” I exclaimed, twisting to get a better look at it.

A man and a woman, both very pretty in matching neon suits, greeted us in the first room. “Good evening, guests,” said the woman in green.

“Welcome to the Carnival of Horrors,” said the man in orange.

“Let us take your tickets,” they said together, giving us creepy grins.

We handed over the tickets and they ceremoniously put them into a clear plastic box, laughing ominously.

“Before we begin your journey, we must explain a few rules,” said Green.

“If you are pregnant or have a weak heart, or other medical conditions, you are advised caution, and should not go through the carnival,” said Orange.

“Please do not touch our actors. They will not touch you,” said Green.

“So no punching anyone,” Aki muttered, nudging Meiko.

“Not me,” she said, glancing at me.

I laughed nervously. I did not have the best track record at haunted houses.

“In some rooms, you will find a roulette wheel. Please spin it to determine your fate,” said Orange, gesturing to a massive wheel that was painted patchily with neon paint. Glowing white icons labeled each segment. There was a skull, a hand, an eye, a heart, and a Cheshire grin.

“Enter the room labeled with the icon that you spin,” explained Green.

“Enjoy the wonders that await you,” they said together, cackling, before bowing out of the way.

“Alright, let’s spin,” Aki said, walking up to the wheel. He pulled down hard and spun it around. It slowed and landed on the eye.

“Oooh,” Green cooed, clapping her hands. It did nothing to calm my nerves.

“This way, please.” Orange gestured towards the passage way that had a bright green eye printed above it.

Rou and Aki went ahead, but I hesitated. Meiko looked at me, “Come on, scaredy cat.” I nodded and followed after her, taking a fistful of the back of her dress and letting her lead me.

This hallway was black, except for occasional bright eyes in various neon colors.

“Haha, creepy,” Aki said, sounding significantly more relaxed than me.

“Shut up, Akkun,” Rou said tiredly. He was walking on ahead, ignoring the the decorations.

“Oh, what? This is fun,” Aki said. “Right, Meiki?” I didn’t answer him. “Meiki? You’re seriously freaked out by this? You deal with way scarier stuff all the time. And this isn’t even actually dangerous.”

“Yeah, but like, with a reason,” I muttered defensively. And it was different when something jumping out in a threatening way could be punched. I could handle things when there was actually something to do.

“Shush, leave her alone,” Meiko said, amused. “It’s not like these things are actually any fun if you’re not scared anyway.”

“We’re not here to have fun,” Rou muttered.

“I know, Rou,” Meiko said complacently.

The road turned and the room widened out. We continued on. I noticed something weird about the walls. They were completely lined with people in body paint that matched the paint on the walls. They were all watching us, expressions neutral. “Uh, guys, there’s a bunch of people staring at us,” I said. And as soon as I said it, they started peeling away from the wall, starting with the people at the beginning of the room. They walked towards us, slowly closing in. My heart raced in my chest. “Let’s go, let’s go!” I babbled, and I half carried Meiko out of the room, leaving the boys behind. There was another short hallway full of eyes, and then we were back in another big room with a roulette wheel.

Aki came in laughing. “Did you see that last guy's face?”

“This is stupid.” Rou sighed, as he entered the room.

“I’ll spin this time,” Meiko said, and I let go of her dress and latched onto Rou’s sleeve instead. He glanced at me and took my hand instead. The roulette rattled and then slowed. It clicked into place, landing on the heart.

“Let’s see what this one is!” Aki said, charging onward towards the room with the anatomically correct heart glowing over it. Meiko smiled at us before heading after him.

“Are you alright?” Rou asked.

“Yeah. I'll be fine. Come on,” I said, squeezing his hand. The hallway was dark, but there was a pulsing light that flowed down the walls like blood pumping in veins. The floor was soft and uneven, like it was made of rubber, or flesh. Probably rubber. I hoped it was rubber. There was a soft throbbing sound that matched up with the lights.

Hunger. Hunger. Hunger.

Rou gripped my hand tighter, dispelling the memory.

“You okay?” I asked, somehow feeling more relaxed because he was nervous.

“It’s like the Under, a little,” Rou said through clenched teeth.

“Oh.” Hunger. “I'm here,” I said. He nodded, his face looking pale.

As we went down the hall, the sound got faster and the lights went quicker, and I could feel my own heart beat speeding up. The hall opened into a bigger room, and I recoiled as we entered. A large mechanical heart beat quickly, built into the wall of the room. A man in glowing red clothes and bloody make up was sitting there stabbing into the heart. He saw us and shouted, before running towards us.

I very much wanted to punch the guy, but instead Rou started running towards the exit, past Aki and Meiko. I went with him, catching my breath in the hall. Aki and Meiko followed us, laughing hysterically.

“Dang, they sure went all out on this,” Aki said, giggling nervously. “I’m surprised, with it being the first time they've had this party.”

“We don’t know that. They could have it every year and nobody remembers,” Meiko said.

“Come on, let’s keep moving,” I said, noticing that Rou’s face was still pale and pinched. We ended up in another roulette room. I spun this time, and it landed on mouth. We walked into the mouth hallway. It was similar to the eye room, where everything was black besides glowing grins on the walls. This time, instead of getting into a wider room, the hall narrowed further. Meiko shrieked when a cold gust of air hit her neck. She scampered to the other end of the room and we followed after. There were other cold bursts of air at various levels as we went down the narrow room, until we were back into the other hallway.

Soon we were back into the roulette room. Meiko was waiting and looking at us guiltily. “That surprised me.” She took a deep breath and calmed down. “Is this place going around in circles?”

“I don’t think so? I’m not sure. This place is weirdly big if we’re not,” I said.

“It could be ReMares,” Rou said, walking up to the roulette wheel. He spun it. “Maybe one of us should transform.”

“I’m not sure,” I said, and the roulette landed on the skull. There was a rumbling sound that cut off my train of thought. “What was that?” I asked.

“Sound effects,” Aki said lightly. “Come on. Maybe we have to get each of the different rooms before we can exit.”

We went down the path. It was just a dark hall. We ended up in the roulette room again.

“Weird,” Aki said, and spun the roulette again. It was the skull again. We headed down the path, and the same thing happened.

“I told you, this stinks of ReMares,” Rou muttered.

“What if we go down one of the other paths? Without spinning the wheel?” Meiko asked.

“Let’s see,” Aki said, and we went down the hands hallway. It was the same as the last hallway, dark and plain, and then we were back in the roulette room again. “Are we trapped?” He said, his voice raising in fear. “Shit, shit, stay here,” he said, and ran down the eyeball hall. A few seconds later and he was back in the room.

“ReMares,” Rou said, getting annoyed.

“Alright, alright. I’ll see if I can flush anyone out,” Aki said, and did his transformation pose, stamping his driver to his waist and stepping through the sigil, and his armor appeared. The bronze part of his armor stayed the same, but the orange and indigo glowed under the black lights.

Meiko and I transformed too. I went straight for Year, which glowed bright under the black lights. Winter’s poncho and eyes glowed bright red, although her armor didn’t pick up the glow.

“Abracadabra!” Fall said, and something shimmered on the roulette wheel. He frowned and said it again. It shimmered again, and a dark form appeared, lounging on top of the wheel. The form had black hakama and a bright pink kimono. There was a black bushy tail tipped with pink light, and a face that looked similar to a fox mask, with pink markings.

I glanced back at Rou, and the resemblance was uncanny. Rou was staring back at him, his face pale. “Ki…” Rou whispered, “What did they do to you?”

“You found me,” Ki said pleasantly, “Good job. I was not sure Niseimon would deliver my messages.”

Rou pulled a driver out of his sleeve. It didn’t have the colored plastic shell that Winter and Fall’s did, and there were wires and exposed circuitry. He raised it up. “Henshin!” he said, and as he started to lower it down towards his waist. Ki flickered out of view and reappeared in front of Rou, a black inky hand streaked with pink on the corner of the driver, carefully not touching Rou’s skin.

“No, I’m afraid not. It’s not ready, Rou,” Ki said softly. “And neither am I.” He disappeared again and reappeared on top of the roulette table, holding onto the driver.

Rou looked dazed for a moment, and then he looked angry. “What the hell are you doing, Ki?! We need to bring you back with us! We need you! I need you!”

Ki’s head dipped for a moment. “Rou. There are things I need to do. Like…” He disappeared and reappeared beside me, grabbing my indigo Memoka from my belt, before disappearing again standing on the table again. “This.”

It happened so quickly that I couldn’t react until it had already happened, “Hey! Give that back!”

He tossed it up, and caught it. “Sorry, I need to borrow it for a little while, Year,” Ki said.

“Why?! You need to tell us what’s going on,” I demanded.

He looked down at me as if surprised. “Why?”

“Because, we’re comrades!” I said, annoyed. “We can help you!”

Ki stared at me for a moment longer, and then shook his head slowly, “I’m afraid I can’t. Not yet. Surely you understand?” He tilted his head, a glowing ear twitching.

“Cryptic bastard,” Fall growled.

“You’re one to talk, Fall. I got the idea from you,” Ki said, tilting his head. Fall clenched his fist and took a threatening step forward. Ki shook his head. “Don’t. This is for your benefit. This is the first time I have had power… really had power.” He grinned slowly and a thrill of fear went up my spine as his pink markings flared brightly. “There is no sense throwing it away without using it, don’t you think?”

“You didn’t want to be a ReMare. No matter what. You hated it, so… so much,” Rou said, his face twisted in pain and sorrow.

“I did,” Ki said, emphasizing the past tense. “I will use what I can.”

I couldn’t accept that sitting down. My belt chimed and I drew the Prism Blade. “No!” I shouted, and ran at Ki. He disappeared before my sword could touch him, and his laughter echoed through the room.

 


	25. Ghosts

I watched the pain fade from Rou’s expression, and harden into a look of expectation. “Well? Are you going to see if there’s a ReMare here or not?” he said, crossing his arms.

“We already did, Rou,” Winter said softly, and walked over to him, erasing her transformation. He looked at her, his eyes wide.

“What?” he asked, fear rising in his voice, “What happened?”

Fall and I erased our transformations. I walked over to the roulette and slowly picked up the unfinished Spring Driver, and held it up. “Ki showed up. He stopped you from transforming and took my Witch Memoka and disappeared.”

Rou looked struck all over again. “Why?” he asked, sounding like a lost puppy.

Aki sighed and put an arm around Rou’s shoulders. “Scheming fox garbage, probably. It’ll work out. Or he’ll go mad with power and we’ll kick his ass. Something like that.”

“Scheming fox garbage inspired by our dumb turncoat brother complex boy,” Meiko muttered.

“I don’t have a brother complex!” Aki frowned. “It’s not a complex to want to protect my family.”

“That's what you objected to?” Meiko asked distractedly, as sounds from outside the tent roared up. “We better go see what’s going on.”

Rou nodded, a grim frown on his face.

I nodded and headed down the first hallway in front of me, the skull one. This time it was entirely different. Brightly colored skulls painted like sugar skulls covered the walls, and in the wide room people painted with skeleton bones on black fabric danced around, laughing and trying to get in our faces. I wasn’t having it. I just plowed onward, ignoring them entirely. They scattered out of the way to avoid getting steamrolled. Rou was close behind me, with Aki following, shrugging apologetically to the horror house actors. Meiko brought up the rear.

Instead of opening back to another roulette room, it opened back into the main room. Orange and Green were standing at the exit of the room, peering out nervously the door. “What’s going on?” I demanded, marching right up to them. They startled and turned to face us.

“Oh! You’re finished. Congratulations,” Green said.

“Cut the crap,” I said. “What happened?”

“There’s a couple out there in a fox and cat costume that are terrorizing people. It’s… well… A little rude, since that’s our job,” Orange said delicately.

“Ki,” Rou growled, and pushed past Green. I followed after him, and I could hear Meiko muttering a quick apology to them as she followed.

Ki and Maneki had taken over the DJ’s stage, and were lounging on it like they were royalty observing peasants desperately trying to appease them with entertainment. Blots with bright streaks of various colors were dancing at terrified party goers.

“Enough!” I shouted, breaking through the crowd. “Henshin!” I shouted, and swiped the Year Memoka across my Time Driver.

“This is your YEAR! Let’s go! Let’s go! Yeah!” It chimed, and shimmery light swirled around me. “Guys, get the guests out of here!” I shouted.

“Got it!” Aki shouted back, and I heard both Fall and Winter’s transformation chimes.

“Oh my! I’m so surprised! Look, dear Foxy. Is this the first time you’ve seen your little friends since you’ve gotten so stroooong?” Maneki purred, fawning over Ki in a way that made him puff out his chest.

“It is,” Ki said, grinning widely. “Wouldn’t it be interesting to see who is stronger now?”

“Why, Ki! I thought you’d never ask! Of course, that sounds _fascinating_.” Maneki was grinning now too, as if she had been rewarded with all the cans of tuna.

“Tch.” Rou was staring up at Ki, angry and fierce. I could see him reaching back up his sleeve for his half-finished Driver. Ki’s eyes opened wider, and he thrashed his tail, hopping down from the stage lightly. Rou made an annoyed noise again but thought better of it. Instead he crossed his arms and continued trying to burn the blot from Ki through the sheer ferocity of his glare. Ki gave a small satisfied nod.

“You’re going to need to switch to Sakura, Year, if you want to keep up with me,” Ki said lightly, as if that exchange hadn’t happened at all.

“How sporting!” Maneki praised, clapping her hands.

“What’s the point of fighting otherwise? It’s obvious that I’m faster,” Ki held up his hands in an elaborate shrug.

“I’ll decide what to do,” I snarled. Part of me hated to admit that he was right, but I was also worried that Maneki would end up stepping in and I’d need Year’s more well-rounded strength and defense.

“Suit yourself,” Ki dropped his arms. And then he was gone, and I felt buffeted by sharp blows. I braced myself, weathering the attacks, and paying attention to his rhythm.

Moving suddenly, I stuck out my foot sharply, and caught Ki’s leg. He stumbled and I took that brief moment of distraction to draw the Prism Blade and slash at him. It caught him across the face, leaving behind a bright white scar over his left eye.

He hissed in pain and disappeared, reappearing a good ten feet away from me. “I did not realize how much that hurt. I underestimated you. I apologize.” He then grinned and held up the indigo Memoka that he had stolen from me in the haunted house. “I did however, retrieve a little treat for our little shouty friend, Maneki.”

“Oh, so you did!” Maneki said, dropping down to the ground level. “I’ll summon him right now!” She said, and clapped her hands. An inky hole appeared in the ground and Nisei rose out of it. “Niseimon, dear, Foxy got you something.”

Nisei glanced at Ki, his expression barely interested. “Is that so?”

Ki snapped the Memoka in half, releasing the indigo spirit. “I believe you’re familiar with this one, are you not? You had it as your own recently, until you let it get into Sharky’s hands. You should be grateful we’re giving it back to you.”

Niseimon bowed stiffly. “Thank you very much. Henshin.” He put his driver on his waist and stamped it, transforming into Summer. He howled and Ki tossed him the spirit. He pressed it against his Driver and indigo stripes appeared on his armor. With his normal sky blue, yellow and orange, he now had stripes of silver, indigo, brown and green. Seven colors. The same as Maneki, although Tigra had eleven.

“Now, this isn’t just a reward for nothing. Go distract them, won’t you? We have things to do,” Maneki said, waving her hand dismissively.

Summer snarled and bolted towards me, arms up to tackle me. I raised my sword to defend myself, but out of nowhere, Fall tackled Summer to the ground, rolling a few feet and planting a knee on Summer’s chest. “Little brother, I don’t think so,” Fall said in a sing song voice.

Summer shrieked and struggled to get Fall off of him. Fall was in a spot that made it difficult to move, but Summer had been strong to begin with, and was only getting stronger. He howled into the air and a sigil appeared underneath him, and Summer and Fall both fell through it.

Winter climbed up onto the stage behind Maneki, and I wanted to yell at her to get back. I hesitated only because I didn't want to alert Maneki.

Summer and Fall reappeared five foot above the ground with Summer on top, before crashing both of them back to the ground. Fall cried out and I moved to go help him. I had to believe Winter would be fine. She was strong, and she knew what she was doing. Probably.

Before I could reach Fall, Ki was suddenly in my face again. “Don’t get distracted, Year,” he admonished gently, and shoved me hard. I flew back, crashing into the ground.

Rou made a rude gesture at Ki, before running over to me to help me up. I stood up slowly. “He’s right, you know. You might want to switch to Sakura,’ he said quietly.

Maneki noticed Winter’s approach and turned toward her lazily, “Well, well. If it isn’t the ice queen herself. Do you really think you can take me on yourself?” Winter ignored her and charged with her massive sword raised high. Maneki laughed and engaged her in combat.

Ki tilted his head. “See, you’re getting distracted again.” He disappeared.

“Hmph,” I replied, annoyed, and brought out my pink Memoka, and swiped it across the Memoka. “Henshin!”

“Sakura in full bloom! Come and See!” Pink cherry blossom petals of light fluttered around me. Ki appeared near me, but the cherry blossom lights from my transformation rushed at him, throwing him back a few feet. He landed on one knee, and sat down on his ankles. He waited with his hands on his knees for my transformation light to stop protecting me. The lights returned to me and my armor changed. Without waiting another moment, I summoned the Prism Sakura and mounted it to my wrist, and ran at Ki, flinging sakura at him. I had hoped that being seated, it would slow him down enough to hit, but he stood up in one fluid motion and dodged swiftly, avoiding each throwing star with ease. It did feel like he was moving slower now. Or at least, I could see him moving. I reached him and grabbed the front of his bright pink kimono.

There was a flash of pink, and I was on a mountain. It didn’t look like Mt. Shodai. There was no temple, no forest, no ravine. Instead, there was bamboo, as far as I could see. A silvery river broke through the towering bamboo poles. A pink fox stopped to drink, and nearly startled when a long limbed silver crane fluttered its wings nearby.

“Kitsune,” the crane said softly. “The Bright Lady has a task for you.”

“Listen, lady, I’m busy,” he said, and then curiosity got the better of him, “For me?” the fox tilted his head, considering the bird. “But she...”

“You are surprised that the Bright Lady requests you, trickster?” the crane asked.

The fox sat on the ground, his fluffy tail curled around him. “I suppose you could say that.”

The crane laughed, and said smiling, like she knew about a special present that he didn’t. “Go, and find out.”

“Pass,” the fox said, and lazily stood up and slunk off. But as much as the fox tried to give off a bored disinterested aura, he fairly crackled with barely contained curiosity. The crane saw the direction that he was heading, and nodded.

Suddenly, the ReMare Ki was in front of me again, in the real world. He looked at me in surprise for a moment, and then grinned. “Decided to catch up?” He asked lightly, and then threw me to the ground in a fluid martial arts move. “Let’s see… Should I take another Memoka?” he asked, putting a foot delicately on my chest. “I think we need just… one… more,” he said slowly, bending over to grab a Memoka off of my belt.

There was sound like a brick thrown into the mud, and Ki swore and stumbled back. Rou was standing aggressively near me. “Get back! I refuse to let you take anything else from us!” Rou shouted. Ki stared back at him, and then down at his chest. Rou’s driver was embedded there.

“That… was foolish,” Ki said slowly, and then pulled the driver out with a slow squelching sound. “You didn’t really think that through, did you?” he asked tilting his head. “I’m not going to give this back, you know.” Again. The word hung in the air, unsaid. Awareness dawned on Rou’s face as he realized that he had basically handed the enemy another driver, to the one ReMare who could definitely fix it.

I scrambled up, getting to my feet, half unbalanced, and ran at Ki, full tilt, to try and get the driver back. He shifted to a stance that made me think if I wasn’t careful he’d throw me across the park again. I threw a spray of throwing stars at him to try and disrupt his stance. He gracefully moved to avoid them, keeping his form perfect.

At just the right movement, before colliding into him, I slid down to the ground, making a low sweeping kick at his feet. He staggered to the ground. I shifted to try and grapple him, to pry the driver out of his hands, to keep him from running again. .

“Sakura, falling down,” my driver warned me, and in a desperate panic, I flung myself back, scrambling back as my armor disappeared. I desperately grabbed for another Memoka, but it was too late. Ki had rose back to his feet, and now he was behind Summer. He grabbed Summer by the scarf, and disappeared, reappearing back on stage. He roughly shoved Winter off the stage and onto the ground. “Enough, Maneki. We have plenty for now. Let’s go,” Ki said, showing her the driver. She nodded, and all three of them disappeared into the Under.

I sat on my knees, feeling utterly defeated.

Rou walked towards me, and plopped down on the ground nearby. “It happened again, didn’t it?” he asked, watching as Fall and Winter picked themselves up off the ground slowly and swiped their drivers clear, their armor disappearing in a flash of colored light.

“It sure did,” I said, unable to keep all of the aggravation out of my voice.

“What?” he asked.

“Ki was with Maneki. He challenged us, and pretend he stole the Memoka that he stole earlier. Maneki had him give it to Summer,” I said, not ready to process the bit of stupidity where he threw his prototype driver at someone whose loyalty was possibly questionable. I did want to trust Ki. I wanted to think that he had some sort of plan that would benefit us, but until it panned out, it was dangerous to trust him.

“Woo, damn, that boy is rough,” Aki said, rubbing his shoulder as he walked over to us. “He’s so grounded.”

“He’s got seven colors now,” I told him. “I seem to remember someone telling me that I was a reckless idiot for fighting Sharky by myself when she had seven colors.”

“It is stupid!” Aki agreed.

“So, what? He showboated and left?” Rou asked. Meiko limped over and sat down on a nearby bench.

I sighed. “No. He tried to steal another Memoka from me, and you chucked your driver at him to stop him.”

There was a moment of silence as they all processed that. Rou couldn’t remember doing it, and Aki and Meiko had had their hands full with Summer and Maneki. Rou reached his hand into his sleeve, and found nothing.

“So, of course, he took it! He gave it back before, but he couldn’t really do that in front of Maneki, now could he? So now they have your driver, and who knows who they’ll give it to,” I said, throwing my hands in the air in irritation. “Great job!”

“To be fair, if Summer does decide to kick our asses for real, I’d rather him not have another color,” Aki said, trying to break up the heavy gloom that had fallen over us.

“He could probably get all three spring colors from the driver if Ki actually gets it working,” Rou said slowly.

“Shit,” Aki said, whistling lowly, “That was pretty dumb then, Jiro. What in the world was going through your head on that one?”

“Yeah, whatever. How the hell am I supposed to know?” Rou demanded, standing up to try and get in Aki’s face.

“Stop!” I said, regretting having gotten angry at Rou for something he couldn’t even remember doing. "It doesn’t matter. It’s done now. We’ll have to start again.”

“Setting us back almost two months,” Meiko said, sighing. She looked tired and pale, and her blue make up was definitely not helping.

“It’ll go faster this time. We know what to do to get to that point,” Rou said, but he balled his hands into fists and released them again, agitated and not containing it well.

“If everything goes right,” Meiko agreed.

“I dunno, I don't think we're allowed to have stuff go right, for once,” Aki said, some dark humor prodding him. “Perhaps I should go chuck my driver in the river.”

“Shut up!” Rou snapped.

I looked around the park as they bickered. The Halloween decorations seemed sad and lonely without the crowd of people who had fled. “We’re alive,” I said slowly, “So… At least there’s that. And… I did get a memory when I grabbed Ki.”

Rou turned sharply towards me. His expression was complicated. He looked both hopeful and embarrassed, with the traces of anger and annoyance he felt at himself. “What was it?”

“It was from when he was a spirit. A silver crane in a bamboo forest on a mountain gave him a message from the Bright Lady,” I said.

“Ha!” Aki said, “I knew there was a silver crane!”

“We all knew that. You said it showed up on the Synchrocycle’s map,” Meiko said, impatiently.

“Yeah, well, I still knew it was important,” Aki said, making a face at her. She responded with a tired look that made it clear she wasn’t going to put up with his silly gloating.

“Where is there a bamboo mountain though?” Rou asked. “We should go there.”

“The Synchrocycle map said the east side of town, but that’s all just suburbs. The only mountain that’s actually in Oara is Mt. Shodai,” I said slowly. “Do we know if the spirits go to other places?” I asked. “Maybe the mountain is outside of Oara.”

“I’ve never heard of one leaving Oara by themselves,” Rou said, slowly. “I tried once, with Ki, and it was okay. But Ki was very uncomfortable. He said it felt like driving on a tiny animal trail instead of a highway. And this was in downtown Tenjin. So…”

“I thought they get energy from memories? Wouldn't a bigger city be better for them?” Aki asked.

Rou nodded. “I think they’re sort of tied to the memories of this city. Of Oara. Of course… That doesn’t mean that there aren't any other spirits in other places. Or that spirits stubborn enough couldn’t forge a new trial until it grew big enough to support them. ”

“So… This Crane might be really powerful?” I said, hopefully. We needed something to help turn the tides in our battle. Aki was right about that for sure. Something needed to go right for once.

“That seems likely,” Rou said. A spark was back in his eyes. A lead was exactly what we needed.

“It seems just as likely that we forgot the mountain,” Meiko said. We stared at her in stunned silence for a moment.

“That… Is also possible.” Rou deflated.

“Damn ReMares,” Aki added. We were all quiet as we silently agreed with that sentiment.

“And the other thing that seems possible, is that this is another trap for Ki or Summer to steal another Memoka,” Meiko added at length.

“He gave back the driver when Maneki wasn't around,” Aki said.

“And he keeps giving us clues an stuff. I think he's trying to help as much as he can,” I added.

“It might seem like Ki is helping us, but we’re not sure what his motives are,” Meiko said. Rou opened his mouth to object and Meiko shook her head, “No, we don’t. We really don’t. I know you want to trust him, and we definitely want to save him, but you heard him. He’s had a taste of power and we don’t know what that and the hunger of being a ReMare has done to him.”

Rou was quiet for a moment, and then reached up to take off his mask, holding it in his hands and looking at it. “You’re right. I understand that.”

“But it doesn’t really matter, does it? What else are we going to do?” Aki asked. “Sit around waiting for them to attack again? When there’s a chance it isn’t just a trap?”

“We said that coming here in the first place,” Meiko said. “What exactly did we accomplish aside from losing two pieces of important equipment?”

“Well, we’ve either strengthened our allies, or made massive fools of ourselves,” Aki said, still sounding amused by his own dark humor. “Either way, we learned something about Ki as a ReMare.”

“How is he going to lie about a memory?” I asked.

“If he's deliberately giving you bits that don't tell everything? This crane could be a dangerous ReMare now, for all we know,” Meiko said.

“I don't want to stand here arguing about whether or not it's a trap. At this point, we can't afford to ignore a possible ally.” I shook my head. “And if it is a trap, we’ll deal with it then. Let’s go home.” I stood up slowly, and dusted myself off. “You look really tired, Meiko. You should eat.” I said.

Meiko nodded, and we left, heading back to the lab. Once we were there, Aki wrapped Meiko’s knee, which was bruised nastily where Maneki had attacked her, and then busied himself making some curry for the three of them. He offered to make some for me, I shook my head.

“Thought I’d ask in case you forgot again,” Aki said, grinning at me.

“No such luck,” I said, forcing smile back at him.

Rou ate as he started back on the computer, quiet and sullen. Meiko and Aki changed out of their costumes and sat at the couch to eat. I shed my fake butterfly wings, and sat down to go through the Memokas that I still had.

I had Obon, a rich burning orange that was graceful and powerful, but slow, which attacked with paired fans of light. I had Star, which was buttery pale yellow. It was great at jumping and quick, but it didn’t hit very hard. It had a glowing yellow staff. Then there was Rain, which was sky blue and carried a whip of light. It was flexible and fast, but a bit more fragile than Obon. Golden was the closest thing to a powerhouse that I had after losing Silver. It wasn’t as heavy and defensively powerful, but with its golden claws, it was easy to rip apart a ReMare. Then there was the fragile but incredibly fast Sakura, with its pink cherry blossom throwing stars. We also had the red globe of light that Rou had hovering on a data pad attached to his computer, which he was attempting to make into a Memoka when he had a spare moment from working on his Spring Driver.

And finally, there was Year. Balanced, dependable Year, with a glowing white sword. A gift from the Bright Lady to her Champion. I rolled it around on the desk, looking at it. I wasn’t sure what would happen if Summer got a hold of it, but the thought filled me with dread. None of the ReMares I had ever encountered had been marked with white light, unless it was a scar from my attacks.

“I’m going to go now,” I said. I hadn’t realized I had made the decision until I said it.

“You’re going home already?” Aki asked, putting his spoon down and looking over at me. “Do you want me to go with you?”

“No, not home. To go after the crane,” I said, gathering up my Memokas and standing up. “I’m going to go now.”

“You should wait. We should all go, and my leg is a mess,” Meiko said.

“That’s why I should go now. They’ll think we’re going home to tend to our wounds and rest. But… I feel fine. I’m not tired at all, and I didn’t get injured,” I said. Ki had hit me multiple times, but either he was pulling his punches, which was possible, considering the way he had dragged Summer around, or my armor was getting better at protecting me from injury.

Meiko sighed and looked at Aki, as if imploring him to back her up.

He frowned at his curry for a long moment, and then stood up. “I’m going with you.”

“Aki Aki!” Meiko said, affronted. “All of us should go!”

“I don’t think so. Not until Rou’s memories are protected by a driver. And I think she’s right. They’ll be busy with the driver they got their hands on, and they'll think we’re regrouping,” Aki said.

Meiko crossed her arms and glared at both of us. “I should be going with you,” she amended.

“I know you want to go,” I said gently. “But I need to go now. I promise that if we need you, I will call you right away. Okay?”

Rou looked up from his computer. “Go. But this is a scouting mission only. Make sure it’s safe. We’ll follow if it is. You’ll get out of there if it isn’t.”

“We can handle it,” Aki whined.

“If Ki is giving us a message through this crane, I also want to be there,” Rou said, firmly.

I glanced at Meiko, “Is that alright?”

She was quiet for a long moment. “Fine. Be careful.”

“We will,” I said, and headed downstairs, Aki following me close behind. “You’re not too hurt to come, right?” I asked as we got our bikes ready.

“Of course not,” Aki said. “Would I volunteer to come if I was?”

“Yes?” I said, raising an eyebrow at him. It was definitely something he would do. “If I’m going to have back up, I don’t want it to be a liability.”

“Jeeze, that’s cold,” Aki said, freezing as he picked up his helmet. “That’s not like you. Since when have I gone from comrade to liability?”

“You haven’t, but…” I started.

“But what?” Aki said, putting down his helmet roughly.

“You put yourself in situations where I can’t always protect you…” I said quietly. “I can’t trust Summer to show up and save you every time. And you do have a history with demanding to fight even if you’re badly injured…”

Aki stared at me for a long time. Long enough for me to feel uncomfortable. “You do the same thing, you idiot. Why do you think I’m doing it?” I squirmed, and looked away. “Because you’re being a reckless dork too, or because you’re being too soft, or worried, or because you’re having some sort of existential crisis, or whatever else! And if someone isn’t there to watch your back, you’ll do something extra stupid. You have a history of that,” he said, throwing the words back in my face.

It hurt, and he was right. “I’m sorry,” I said, meaning it.

“We take care of each others' weaknesses. I had your back with the centipedes, didn't I? And you had my back when I was chasing after my idiot brother, right?” Aki asked, “Or was that all fake?”

“No!” I shook my head, quickly. “No… I’m sorry. It’s not that I don’t value you as a comrade, because I do. You’re amazing. I seriously don’t know where I’d be if you weren’t helping me.” He nodded, as if satisfied by my praise and apology. I couldn’t just let that stand though, because as poorly worded as it was before, I did still think I had a point. “It’s just… You said Summer was rough with you. I just didn’t want you to be doing the thing where you pretend you’re not hurt when you are.”

“Ah,” Aki said, shortly. “I see. He was, but I’m not injured. Do you want me to strip and show you?” he asked, straight faced, and lifting the corner of his shirt.

“In the street?” I asked, scandalized. He broke into a devious grin and raised his eyebrows. He brought his shirt up another inch. “Absolutely not. Let’s go, alright?”

“So, later?” Aki asked, waggling his eyebrows but dropping his shirt.

I rolled my eyes and got on my bike. I brought up the map from the silver crane origami. “Come on, doofus,” I said fondly, and we drove off.

The ride was uneventful this time. No mysterious typhoons, or battles with giant centipedes to distract us from our mission. It was getting dark, but the sky was clear and the air was crisp. The city felt normal, like it could be any town, any place in Japan, and not the unfortunate one being tormented by memory stealing monsters. Not the one where a Halloween party had been ended early due to an attack.

Aki kept up with me, sometimes driving next to me when traffic permitted. It was like we hadn’t argued. Everything was peaceful and calm, golden in the setting sun.

And then we drove through an underpass, and everything was dark. The buildings were dark, the trees were black and scraggly. It was like stepping into an old black and white photograph.

I slowed to a stop, pulling into a deserted parking lot. According to the sign on the building, it was the same restaurant that we had weathered the typhoon in a few weeks ago. Except everything here seemed empty and dark. No cars drove down the wide streets, and no people were walking around shopping or visiting people. Twisted black weeds grew up from the cracks in the sidewalk. Aki stopped next to me, and we removed our helmets.

“This doesn’t look good,” Aki said.

“It's kind of like the Under,” I said, frowning. “This area was normal before, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah it was… I mean… Isn't the Under inky? This just looks like I suddenly went colorblind,” Aki said, and glanced back in the direction we came from. Everything still looked normal over there, a riot of autumn colors and city lights. “Except I can still see that. And our stuff is still colorful.” He plucked at his brown bomber jacket.

“I wonder what happened here,” I said, nudging grass with my foot. It crumbled.

“I’ll give you three guesses, and the first two don’t count,” Aki said dryly.

“Well, I mean, obviously ReMares were involved,” I said, “But I didn’t know this could happen…”

“Should we go back? This is kinda creeping me out,” Aki said, shivering a little. “And I still don’t see the mountain.”

“I think…” I said slowly, “That we need to get to the bottom of this now. Or I'll just keep being creeped out.”

“I thought you’d say that,” Aki said ruefully. “The nerds will be annoyed.”

“Our mission hasn’t changed. We’ll scout stuff out, and if it stops being safe we’ll leave,” I said. “Let’s keep going.” I put my helmet back on and looked up to the east.

And there was the mountain.

 


	26. The Lost Mountain

The mountain loomed. It was much higher than Mt. Shodai, and by rights should have been visible from any part of the city. I distractedly grabbed Aki’s arm and pointed at it. I didn’t want to let it out of my sight, in case it… ran away? It was a mountain, so part of me felt it was foolish to think that way, but the other part echoed what Meiko said. We had forgotten an entire mountain, and I was afraid that if I looked away, it would be gone again.

“What?” Aki said, confused, and then he saw it too. “Oh. Ohhh. Dang. That… Is unsettling.”

“It’s just a mountain,” I said, trying to quiet my own fears.

“Really? Because it definitely looks like the kind of place a final boss hangs out. Big dark mountain right up in town, that we’ve never seen before? That’s normal? Because I’m thinking all it needs is an ominous ring of clouds and some lava,” Aki said, his voice getting louder and faster as he spoke. “And I wouldn’t get near it without an army.”

“You can go back, if you want,” I said, not sure if I wanted him to say he'd go or stay. I felt I had to go either way, but if he left, I'd have a good excuse to leave too.

“Not a chance. There’s no lava yet,” Aki said, grinning fiercely. “And Meiko would murder me if I didn’t come back with you in tow. And then Rou would bring me back to life, just to murder me again.”

“Alright, can’t have that. Let’s go. We’ll be careful.”

The closer to the mountain, the more it felt like everything was too quiet and still. It started to feel like our motorcycles were offending something big and terrifying by being loud. It was like stepping into the teacher’s office at school uninvited, but worse. Just… wrong.

I stopped again at the base of the mountain. Aki pulled up next to me. “What’s wrong?” he whispered at me.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to bring the motorcycles up the mountain,” I whispered back.

Aki nodded. He had felt compelled to whisper too. We left our bikes behind, taking the Pair Devices with us, and started hiking.

“There was a river,” I whispered, “in Ki’s memory. If we find it, I think we’ll find the crane.”

“Do you really think the crane is still here?” Akito whispered back, gesturing at the skeletal black bamboo poles growing around the road.

I shrugged. “We have to try.” We hiked in silence for a while. The sun had set, but instead of getting darker, the sky stayed ashy gray

I nearly jumped out of my skin when my phone started playing Killer Queen. I scrambled to answer it, just to make the noise stop. “Hello?” I hissed into the phone.

“It’s getting late. What are you doing?” Meiko asked.

“Scouting. You know, that thing you do quietly?” I whispered, annoyed.

“Sorry, you could have texted us an update,” Meiko said, not sounding sorry at all. “What’s going on?”

“We found the mountain. We had to abandon our bikes, so it might take a while. We’ll tell you everything when we’re finished,” I responded. “Right now there’s nothing around, so it’s not a good time to talk. It’s too quiet.”

Meiko was quiet for a moment, and then said, “Alright. Keep us updated.” She hung up the phone. I sighed and put my phone on vibrate before putting it back in my pocket.

Aki had kept walking ahead, and I jogged up the steep hill to catch up with him. He glanced at me and I shrugged. We continued, and we eventually reached a sign for a park protecting the Shirokawa river source. It wasn't anywhere near the top of the mountain, but it seemed like the right place. I pointed at it, and Aki nodded. We turned off the road, and followed the signs.

“No wonder the river is so gross, if it goes through this weird area,” Aki whispered. Shirokawa was the same river that flowed down by the River Park, where we had fought the weird otter turtle ReMare.

“Hm, yeah,” I agreed quietly.

There was a parking lot with the sign for the Shirokawa Source and a rough gravel path went into the bamboo forest. As we went down the path, I could hear the soft burbling of water, before it opened out into a clearing. There were layers of large rocks, overlooking a cliff. To my surprise, there was color. On one side of the clearing there was a spring bubbling up with silvery water, which poured over a rocky ledge and into a pool, which also spilled over a second ledge, where the stream then winded its way through the bamboo forest. The bamboo was all still black, but there was grass along the side of the spring that was actually green. A single spider chrysanthemum grew near the spring, the flower bursting like a red firework.

“Look…” I whispered.

Aki nodded. We stood there watching the spring, catching our breath from the hike. Nothing was happening. “What do we do?” Akito asked.

“We could try following the river down,” I said, walking up to the edge of the spring.

“I guess. We’d have to find an easier way down,” he said, looking down the side of the cliff. “Or transform.”

“That sounds like using an air horn in a exam,” I said, making a face.

“So... not a good idea?” Aki asked, feigning innocence.

“A very bad idea,” I confirmed, rolling my eyes at him. I knelt down and touched the water. It felt icy cold. On impulse, I cupped some of the water in my hands. I half expected it to remain silvery in my hands, but it was just normal water. I took a sip. It tasted clean and cold.

“You’re just going to drink it?” Aki asked, grabbing my arm in alarm.

“It’s right out of the source. It’s fine,” I told him.

“Yeah, but look at this place, it’s…” Aki gestured at the blackened bamboo. “Gross.”

“It tasted fine,” I said. “Like any other spring water I’ve drank.”

“Still… That doesn’t mean that the water isn’t contaminated with whatever is messing up the rest of this place,” Aki said, looking around nervously.

“It is alright, the water is safe,” said an amused feminine voice that sounded vaguely familiar. The water rippled and the silver light gathered in the center of the spring, before raising up into the slender form of a crane. “Good evening, Butterfly. It is an honor to meet you here,” The crane spirit said, still sounding like she had some sort of secret joke known only to her.

I stood up quickly and bowed deeply. “It’s an honor to meet you, too,” I said formally. “My name is Kimura Mei, and my friend here is Meiaki Akito.” I gestured over to him, and he stopped staring in surprise to bow as well. I stepped back to stand next to him again.

“Oh, I know who you are, Butterfly. I suppose, however, you don’t know my name though, do you?” she asked, tilting her head. I shook my head no. “I’ll amend that. I am called Sen. What brings you here, after all this time?”

“Um, my friend, Ki… He’s a fox spirit, he gave us a message that we think meant to go find you,” I said quickly.

“What does it mean when you say you _think_ the Kitsune meant that?” The crane asked, raising up one long slender leg and taking a step forward. “Was his message not clear?”

“Was his message not clear,” Aki repeated back, a little bit bitterly.

“Excuse me?” Sen asked, surprised. I shot Aki a glare to warn him to behave.

Aki shrugged at me, like ‘what else was I supposed to say’ but the crane was still watching him, so he explained. “It was sort of coded in a stupidly complicated way,” Aki said slowly, “He gave a pink crane origami to a ReMare possessing my brother, who stole the silver Memoka from Year, and then I thought, that maybe I could use a silver crane origami to find my brother. And then it lead here instead.”

“I would say that that does not sound like he is actually trying to give you a message, but I do know that Kitsune is sometimes… indirect,” Sen said, sounding mildly amused, “But I also believe that he was supposed to be helping you directly? Am I mistaken?”

I looked at Akito, not sure what to say. He didn’t offer any help, so I decided to be honest with Sen, “He was. He was kidnapped by ReMares, and is kind of one of them now,” I said, feeling incredibly guilty about it.

Sen made a sound like the sharp intake of breath. “Oh.”

“We… fought earlier today. I saw his memory, of you asking him to help the Bright Lady. He said no, then, but…” I said, trailing off. She didn't speak for a long time. Finally I said, “I do think he meant for us to look for you.”

“I’m sorry, I am still reeling from the news that you have brought me. He’s a ReMare now? That is terrible…” Sen said. It sounded like she felt very alone, like she was a million miles away.

“We will get him back,” I promised.

“It’s just, there are not many of us left. I fear the corruption will spread,” Sen said mournfully.

“The corruption? Like, there’ll be more ReMares?” I asked.

“No. Although that may very well be a side effect. You don’t know about the corruption?” She asked.

“The blots?” I asked, “Or is it how this place is all colorless?”

“Blots are a part of it, yes. The corruption what is… ruining this place,” she said, gently spreading her wings and brushing one tip against a bamboo pole. It shimmered green for a brief second, before returning to black. “Humans and Spirits have a symbiotic relationship. Spirits can’t live without human memories and connections, and humans won’t live in an area without spirits. It makes them feel… off. Humans will ignore and avoid the area that’s been contaminated. Unless they have a driver, they won’t notice the colors missing, but either way, things will feel very strongly wrong.” She tilted her head at us, “It must not have been easy reaching me here.”

“It felt too quiet, like nothing was allowed to live here,” I agreed.

“It’s the same in reverse. When spirits are strong, the place is attractive to humans, and can even feel holy,” Sen explained. “Perhaps the temple on Mt. Shodai feels that way to you. The Bright Lady was born there, a very long time ago.”

I nodded. It had been extremely easy to let down my guard and fall asleep there.

She flapped her wings irritably, “I am not sure why this was not explained to you sooner. The Kitsune was supposed to be helping you.”

“All of us have had run-ins with ReMares, lady,” Aki said, defending our comrade. “Including him. We have to be a little forgiving of forgotten things.”

“But he has just recently become a ReMare?” Sen asked, confused. “Spirits don't lose memories when touched by ReMares or blots. They became ReMares themselves.”

“He was sharing a body with our friend Rou for years, and I think they kind of protected each other. At least until Maneki shot him with a weird gun that pulled him out,” I explained.

“Do you think this was his way of passing on that information now that he remembers?” Aki asked me, looking thoughtful. “And making sure someone else can help us?”

Sen answered instead, although she sounded distracted by her worries, “It is possible that that is the case. Kitsune is a powerful spirit, despite what he says. Although a ReMare helping humans is...” She shook her head. “Unthinkable. This is really terrible. He holds a lot of territory, and it will start crumbling the longer he is a ReMare.”

“I’m sure that’s part of it,” I said slowly, but I didn’t think it was everything. I already knew I had to stop the ReMares, even if I hadn't known all of the symptoms of their invasion. That information didn't seem like enough to send us someplace so unsettling. I was stumped for a long moment, and then I had an idea. “When I touched the crane origami, it gave me the memory of the formula for the Winter driver. Perhaps that's related?”

“Do you need help assembling the Winter Driver? I could assist with that,” the crane asked, suddenly alert. “I helped him with the Time Driver. And I corresponded with him about the Summer Driver. It isn’t much different.”

“You helped with the Time Driver?” I asked, surprised. “He told me that it was the Bright Lady who made it. Or... He told me he made it, but then remembered that he didn't? This is confusing.” I rubbed my forehead.

“I suppose you would not remember,” Sen said, amused. She brushed my hand with her wing tip, and suddenly everything went silver as I slipped into her memory. I saw myself, long legged and coltish in my junior high school uniform. The younger me waved to Meiko, who stopped in front of the apartment building where our parents lived. I kept going, towards another neighborhood. Why was I not going to the same place?

The younger me made her way to an older neighborhood with Japanese style houses. The mountain loomed in the distance, and an offshoot of the Shirokawa river babbled nearby. I let myself into one of the old houses, and an old woman greeted me distractedly.

A ReMare stood behind her. He looked human. He had pale white skin, and tousled white hair, and he wore a wrinkled and untucked white business shirt, and loose black pants that puddled at his feet. His eyes, including the whites, were the deepest, inky black. Black ink stained his hands, trailing up his arms in a scaly pattern.

“Hello,” he said.

“NO!” I shouted. The words echoed with light, and I shone. I launched myself at him, fragments of armor appearing over my fists and chest, half of my head covered with Year's helmet.

I hit him, and he crumpled, disappearing.

He kicked me in the back, and I fell into a heap on the floor, my armor flickering and disappearing. Sen appeared over me, her wings spread threateningly, like a swan about to attack.

The ReMare, tilted his head, waiting patiently for an attack.

And then the scene went bright, impossibly bright, and when it returned to normal, he was gone. The younger me sat up, looking around in confusion.

And I was back on the mountain.

“Year was made by the Bright Lady. But It needed the fine tuning of a Driver to be fully usable,” the crane said as if it were obvious.

“We actually already have Winter. What we’re trying to build is Spring,” Aki said, not noticing that I was reeling from being pulled into a memory that... Did not make sense with the other things that I knew. Exactly how long had I been Year?

“The concept is the same,” the crane said, lifting her wings in a slight shrug.

“Great, then you can come with us!” Aki said, grinning as if that decided everything. “We can get off this creepy mountain.”

Making Spring was the furthest thing from my mind. “How long?” I asked, my voice small. I felt lost. It seemed like every time I got new information, the maze I was lost in got harder instead of easier.

“Huh?” Aki furrowed his eyebrows at me.

“I don't know. Leaving is more complicated than that. I am the only one left who is able to protect the Shirokawa river. I am not strong anymore, but I do what I can, stubbornly, to protect this place. The ReMares do not notice me here because they are more interested in consuming human memories. But if I go into a human area, they will find me, and they will destroy me,” Sen said, pacing away, further into the water, and looking out over the cliffs.

It didn't seem like I was going to get an answer. I sighed. “We could call Rou and Meiko to come here,” I suggested, although I didn’t much like the idea of hanging out here until they figured out where the missing mountain was, and I wasn't sure explaining would help.

“Or… We still have the silver crane origami.” Aki glanced at me. I shrugged. I wasn't sure it would work, but it seemed as good of an idea as any. “It’s how we’ve been protecting spirits who aren’t helping us with Memokas,” he explained to the crane.

The crane blinked at us. “What exactly do you mean?”

“It’s a way of giving a spirit a physical form,” I said, latching on to the idea as something that made sense like a drowning person latches on to a life preserver.

“You’ll still be able to move around and stuff,” Aki said, “Although I don’t think they can talk?”

I shook my head, “Sharky could talk, but not until she was stronger. And honestly, I think Arachne is still sulking… Although she does use magic a lot more than Sharky does, so maybe she hasn't gotten strong enough... But Sen is strong enough to have an animal form. She’s not just a ball of light. She must be a lot stronger than the Spirits are after we defeat their ReMare form.”

“Let me see this origami. I confess, I am curious,” Sen said, stepping to the edge of the pond. At her feet, the stone became brown and the moss became green again. The water remained silvery.

I took my Pair Device out of my pocket, and took the silver crane off of it. “Here,” I said, holding it out to her. She looked at it carefully, without touching it.

“This is interesting, but very small,” she said, with a touch of distaste.

“Rou can make a bigger one, I think. He’s a lot better at origami than we are,” Akito said. “But It would work for now. Please. We could really use your help.”

“We want to rescue Ki as soon as we can,” I said. “He’s part of our team. And I definitely don’t want this weird stuff to spread.” I gestured at the blackened bamboo. “Please, help us?” Please, give me more answers. I didn't say it, but I stared at her, the words repeating in my thoughts.

Selfish. I ignored it.

“No, I suppose you don’t. Alright. I will help you. If you do not keep me safe, the consequences will be dire.” She paused, and smiled a little. “I do not say that as a threat, but as a precaution. I am trusting you, Butterfly.”

“I will do my best to be worthy of your trust,” I said, bowing deeply.

“She’s good for it,” Aki said less formally. I glanced at him, and he grinned, giving me a thumbs up. I wondered where his confidence came from. I had made a lot of mistakes, including giving my driver to Asuka, getting caught up in Minotaur’s plans, and letting Ki get kidnapped. I nearly froze up when fighting Mu and Kade, and I couldn't get any of my Memokas back from Nisei. And Aki had even said today that he worked himself into the ground because I kept doing stupid things.

I did try to do my best, but it often felt like that wasn’t good enough.

He was still supporting me.

“I… Yeah,” I said, awkwardly. “I try.”

“I hope so,” said Sen sounding concerned. She reached out with one wing and touched the origami crane. She shimmered and the origami glowed briefly, before she disappeared and the origami fluttered to life in my hand. “Oh, this is interesting,” Sen said from the origami. I sighed in relief, and lowered my hand, and she flew around me in a graceful circle. I would have felt bad if she couldn’t talk in this form.

“Then, are we alright to go? I don’t really want to hang out here any longer than I have to,” I said, watching her fly around. She was very small. Smaller even than Sharky.

“Just one moment. I have something that I must do,” Sen said, and the little silver origami crane dipped down to circle the burbling spring. She made a perfect circle, and then crossed it three times in a z shape. The spring’s silvery glow brightened, and she glided back over to me. “That will protect it for some time, as long as nothing happens to me.”

“What was that?” I asked.

“I was renewing my claim to the river,” Sen said simply, and she landed on my shoulder.

“Who claimed the mountain, then?” Aki asked, following me down the gravel path back to towards the parking lot.

Sen was quiet for a long time, and glanced at me. “I do not think now is the time or the place to be talking about that,” she finally said. I felt a surge of anger and wanted to shake the tiny origami crane.

“Why?” I asked, pouring feeling into the word.

“I will explain later, I promise,” she said, and then went silent.

Aki glanced at me and shrugged. I sighed, and the feeling faded. Having her nearby did seem to make the walk less tense and terrible, but there still was a very strong sense of unease which made it feel awkward and unpleasant to make much noise. As we walked, I texted Meiko and Rou. “Found the Crane. Bringing her back. I hope you’re still awake, because we’ll probably have a lot to do.” My phone said it was only eight, but it felt later, between the weird twilight darkness and the hiking.

Then we got back to the bicycles. We transformed them back into the Synchrocycle and the Harvester. “Here, I’ve got a pocket. Ride with me, okay?” Aki offered Sen, and she took him up on it graciously. The drive back went much faster now that we were going in the direction our instincts were demanding.

When we finally got to the border, it was like the scene were Dorothy stepped out of the black and white part of her world, and into the brilliant land of Oz.

There was just one problem. Nisei sat on his motorbike in the parking lot on the other side of the underpass, staring at where we emerged. He straightened up when he saw us, and revved his engine. “Do we run, or do we confront him?” I shouted at Aki over the roar of our engines. He shrugged and pointed forward with one hand. It was better to keep going and meet Nisei in a place that favored us more.

Nisei followed us, and for a while, I tried to lose him in the late night traffic, but he tenaciously kept a short distance behind us. I gave up. He already knew where our hideout was, thanks to Akito helping him raid it, and if it came to a fight, it would be easier to get back up there. I pulled into the alleyway behind Akito’s restaurant, and parked. Akito was close behind. Nisei stopped at the end of the alley and cautiously parked his motorcycle.

“Hello, little brother!” Aki called out, as if Nisei hadn’t thrown him around earlier in the day.

“Where did you go?” he demanded.

“Hell, probably. How about you?” Aki asked, strolling forward.

“I was following you,” Nisei said, without a trace of guile.

“Obviously,” Aki said, rolling his eyes. “Listen, we’ve got stuff to do. If you’ve got a message or whatever, give it.”

“I can’t yet. It’s not for you,” Nisei said, shaking his head. “I am to pass the message on to Rou.”

“I can give it to him, just as well as you can,” Aki countered.

I had enough of it already. “Oh, shush. Come inside. Aki, make something for him to eat. That can be his punishment for being a weirdo and following us all over town,” I said ushering both of the boys inside.

“My food’s not a punishment!” Aki objected.

At the same time Nisei shouted , “I don’t want your human garbage!”

Aki’s eyes widened in surprise, and then his expression settled to something a little more devious. “Human garbage? No, no, you're right. That’s definitely what we’re going to do now. Come on.”

Nisei looked like he wanted to run, but I grabbed his forearm and guided him inside the restaurant portion of the building. I left him at one of the tables. “Stay here. I’ll be back with Rou,” I told him, and disappeared up the elevator. As the doors closed, I heard Aki calling Nisei over.

“Why are you treating with that thing?” came Sen’s voice, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. I spun around and she was floating about head level behind me in the elevator.

“Sorry, you startled me. I didn’t realize you left Aki’s pocket,” I said. “What was that?”

“That boy smells like ReMares and death,” Sen said sternly. “I do not like it.”

“It’s complicated,” I said, “Nisei is a ReMare that’s using Aki’s little brother’s body. Togo… passed away, although I don’t think he actually smells like death? He smells like a normal person to me.” That was a weird thing to think about. I shook my head. “Anyway, Aki thinks that there might be a way to save Togo, so he’s been treating Nisei like a brother.”

“That does not seem like a very good idea,” she said slowly. “He is still a ReMare.”

“Mm, well. We’re full of bad ideas,” I said, still angry at her for not telling me more. The door pinged open, and I stepped out into the lab. “Rou! Meiko!” I called, and they both looked up at me, from where they were working at the big center table.

“I brought a friend,” I said, gesturing at the silver crane. “Her name is Sen, and she thinks she can help with making a Driver.”

“A pleasure to meet you,” she said, dipping her paper head gracefully.

“What happened? Where’s Aki? Tell us everything,” Rou demanded, standing up and walking over to get a better look at Sen.

“Unfortunately, we have another guest,” I said, “Aki’s downstairs with Nisei, who apparently has a message for you. So we might have to wait to explain until after we do that.”

Rou nodded, and headed immediately towards the elevator. Meiko bowed her head to Sen. “We’re glad you’re here,” she said softly, and then handed me a red Memoka as she limped over to the elevator. “Don’t lose this one. It was a pain in the ass to make.”

“Yes ma’am!” I said, and followed them into the elevator. Sharky came tearing out of nowhere and circled Sen merrily. “Sen, that’s Sharky. Sharky, could you protect our new guest? She’s very important. So, no playing rough, got it?”

“I… oh, my, hello!” Sen said, surprised into laughter at Sharky’s antics.

“We’ll be right back, Sen!” I said, and we went downstairs. I expected Nisei to be sulking at one of the tables, but instead, Aki was chattering merrily at him as Nisei diligently stirred a pan full of stir fry ingredients.

“Alright, they’re back. That's enough. Go sit down,” Aki said, gently taking the pan and serving up five portions. He put them on a large platter and brought them out to the main room of the restaurant. We followed, sitting at the table. I nearly objected when he put the meal in front of me, but Aki gave me a pointed look at Nisei. It clearly said that if we were going to bully Nisei into eating human garbage, I also had to take part. The others ate quietly for a few minutes. It was difficult, but I could still do it, even if it was tasteless. Nisei pushed the food around reluctantly. “Try it. You made it, kiddo,” Aki encouraged. Nisei scowled at him and took a bite. And then another. He quickly scarfed the rest of it down, although it was hard to tell if actually enjoyed it, with the wary way he kept looking at Akito.

“I believe you had a message?” Rou asked, no longer able to be patient.

Nisei nodded. “I do. It has come to our attention that Ki is unable to make use of the Spring Driver. A ReMare or a Spirit can’t do it without a human host. He wants to offer you your old arrangement, with one exception.”

“Which is?” Rou said, torn between eager and wary.

“He will of course, still be a ReMare,” Nisei said.

Rou tensed, but nodded. “I see. I will think about this.”

Nisei hesitated, glancing at Aki and then back at Rou. Then he said, “I am personally not sure how that would work with a living human. But I was told to offer.”

“I don’t see what there is to think about this,” Meiko said, crossing her arms. “We’re not going to risk it. Ki can be Spring when he’s no longer a ReMare.”

“I have to remind you, that we do have the Spring Driver,” Nisei said, reluctantly toying with the rice on his plate.

“No, I agree with Meiko. It sounds like a terrible idea. Honestly, we’re really not in the market for more ReMare comrades,” I said, leaning back in my chair. “You’re plenty.”

“We’re not comrades!” Nisei objected.

“Of course,” I said agreeably, mostly because it obviously nettled him further. “Rou, do you have another message to send back to our friend?”

Rou was quiet for a moment. “Tell him I’ll do it if he gives back all the Memokas. All of them. It’s not good for them to be part of a ReMare.”

“I’m not giving them back,” Nisei said, standing up and backing away from the table.

“I don’t like that plan either,” Aki said, anger raising in his voice. “It wouldn't do you any good to be part of a ReMare either, Rou.”

“It doesn’t matter what either of you like. Those are my terms,” Rou said simply. Meiko studied him, and her expression was like a glassy sea. On the surface she seemed calm, but I knew her well enough to see the undercurrents.

“Fine. I will tell him,” Nisei said. He turned stiffly towards me. “Speaking of spirits. You captured a second one. The other centipede. Give it to me.”

“No,” I said, clutching the Memoka tighter.

“I will not accept no for an answer,” Nisei said.

“I’m not going to give it to you,” I said, annoyed. “Buzz off.”

“I see. Then, henshin!” he shouted and in a swift movement, he pressed his Summer Driver against his waist and transformed.

I stood up and swiped the red Memoka across the Time Driver, and put it to my waist and said “Henshin!”

The belt played a guitar riff that sounded a bit like Year's, but it was arranged differently and it sounded much cooler. A red dragon made of light spiraled around me, and then I had my armor. It was bright red, with gold trim, and the cape was red with golden coins. “OMEDITO NEW!” the belt chimed, and almost immediately, it announced “Prism Charge Complete!” I drew the Memoka and it announced “PRISM GUN!” The shape changed in my hand into a blaster. Three half coins were lined up across the barrel of the gun.

I raised the Prism Gun up and shot Summer. Red gold light blasted out of the gun, and it made a kaching sound. The light hit Summer and he stumbled back and snarled at me. He summoned his nunchaku and spun it in front of him to give himself cover.

Meiko sighed. Rou looked like he was still thinking hard. Akito looked between both of them, as if trying to figure out what he should do. They didn’t seem to be planning on doing anything. He slammed both hands on the table, and stood up. “Not in my shop! Come on!” Akito said, exasperated, as if he was scolding a cat for throwing up on his shoes. Summer ignored him and jumped over the table, sending plates rattling to the floor. I shot him again as I backed away from him. Meiko leaned away, as if mildly inconvenienced. Aki grumbled and said, “I swear, it’s like your mothers raised you in a barn… Henshin!” He stepped through his sigil and grabbed Summer by his scarf and me by my cape, and dragged both of us outside. He tossed us into the alley.

As soon as Fall let go of Summer, Summer spun around and shrieked at him, running forward to collide with him. Summer pushed Fall back into the wall, and Fall grunted as he had the air knocked out of him. I grabbed at Summer to try and pull him off, but as it turns out, New wasn't physically strong enough to be more than a minor irritation to Summer. Summer shrugged me off, and knocked his helmet against Fall’s.

“Damn it, leave him alone!” I said, trying to pull him off one more time, just to be ignored again. “Fine!” I shot him point blank with the Prism Gun in the arm. That got his attention. Summer wailed, and staggered away from Fall, holding the arm that I shot with his good arm. There was scorch marks on his armor where the light coins hit him.

Fall shook his head and pealed himself off the wall. “Easy, New,” he warned.

He wouldn’t be able to see my eyes roll behind my helmet, so I rolled my head instead, “He’s a lot stronger than both of us right now, idiot. We can’t afford to be soft right no-“ I was interrupted by Summer slamming into me. I staggered back, and shot him again. He howled and a brown globe of light floated away from him, and the brown streaks faded from his armor. Fall instinctively grabbed the spirit out of the air.

I shot him again, and this time a green spirit floated away. I dashed forward as Summer clutched his side where he had been shot, and I grabbed the green spirit. Summer’s gaze darted between both of us, and he screeched before turning around and running.

“He’d better still be okay,” Fall said, staring after him. We erased our transformations.

“I think he’ll be fine. He’s still got Silver and Witch, and his own armor,” I said. “We can worry about him later. We have two spirits back!” I held up the globe of green light. “And Meiko and Rou figured out how to make them into Memokas again, so we can actually use them.”

“Like you need more upgrades,” Aki complained, shoving my shoulder lightly.

 

 


	27. Exchange

Akito and I went inside with our rescued spirits to find Meiko exploding at Rou. “I can’t believe you’re thinking about trying to deal with them! What if he says yes? You’ll die! It won’t be like before, he’ll take all of your memories and _you_ will disappear,” Meiko shouted, pacing back and forth around the room. Rou still sat at the table, staring down at the table. “Do you really think you’re that expendable?!”

“Hey, we got some of the spirits back,” I said awkwardly butting into the argument. “Nisei ran off.”

“She's right, Rou. There's no reason to even consider the deal anyway. Sen said she could help us with the driver. We’ll have another one in no time,” Aki said, like he was trying to convince a toddler to not throw a fit because there were other toys.

“No, shut up! This isn’t about whether or not we can get a driver! It’s about him being an idiot and trying to sacrifice himself, like _another_ idiot I know,” Meiko rounded on Aki, who promptly shut up.

“I’m not trying to sacrifice myself,” Rou said quietly.

“Then what are you doing?” Meiko demanded, clearly doubting him.

Rou sighed, and rubbed his temples. “I’m hoping that Ki is setting up a trap for himself. To let the driver fall back into our hands.”

“And what if it’s not?” Meiko demanded.

“If it’s not, then… Yes. It’s not like I can fight with you. I can’t remember fights anymore. And it’s not like anyone really remembers me. Even you guys don’t remember our past… I’m barely here anyway…” Rou trailed off, giving a bitter laugh and looking away.

Aki dropped his fist squarely on top of Rou’s head. “Don’t be a moron. We’ve become friends again regardless of whether or not we remember.”

“We’re the Mei Brigade,” I agreed. “We need you here. We want you here. You're one of us.”

“So don't do anything stupid,” Meiko said, adding her fist to Aki’s on top of Rou’s head. “We love you.”

Rou was quiet for a long moment, and Aki and Meiko softened their fists to just rest their hands on his head. He sighed. “Alright…”

“If you really think this is Ki trying to help us, we’ll figure something out. But we can’t let you disappear. We’ll protect you,” I said, grabbing his hands and pulling him up. “So we’d better come up with a plan, okay?”

“Of course,” Rou said. He squeezed my hands, and pulled away and headed towards the elevator. He stopped to rub his eyes. “Let’s go see what Sen can do for us.”

I glanced at Aki and Meiko, whose hands were still half interlocked. They watched Rou protectively. Aki squeezed Meiko's hand and let go. “Come on,” he said, and we followed him into the elevator.

Back upstairs, Sharky was gliding lazy circles around Sen, who was inspecting Rou’s computer set up. “Oh! You’re back. Your machines are quite interesting. I see Ki has been busy after all.”

Rou halted in front of her, the muscles in his back tense.

I moved in with a distraction. “We are, and we've got a few new friends,” I said, setting the two spirits carefully on the pads connected to the laptop.

“That is good news,” Sen said pleasantly.

“So. Explain what happened,” Rou said, sitting down on the couch, with his arms crossed, as if we hadn’t just given him a serious scolding.

I explained how the area around the mountain was dark and uninviting, and how we had felt like any noise would bring the eyes of something dreadful on us. I told him we found the small spark of color at the source of the river, protected and nurtured by Sen, who had been horrified to hear about Ki’s deflection to the other side. I also explained how spirits and humans were connected and how they couldn’t survive without each other. And how Sen had promised to help us with the driver, if we, in exchange, protected her, because she was afraid of losing more of the spirits who protected this city.

The others were quiet while I spoke, and for a little while after.

“We lost the Spring prototype, but I'll show you what I have so far,” Rou said moving to his computer and opening the Spring program. Aki settled down on the couch, still watchful. I was surprised he hadn't called Rou a nerd for getting straight to work. Instead, Akito's expression was serious

“You haven't had a spirit's help?” Sen asked.

“No. Meiko and I have been programming it. And Meiki helped with the sigil,” Rou said.

“I don't believe this would work. Your programming is fine, but there is part of it that needs to be done by a spirit,” Sen said, brushing a paper wing against the computer screen.

Rou brushed his hair away from his face, giving her a twisted smile, “I thought that could be the case. I've been struggling to make the driver for months.” He glanced at me. “They told me that he said it wasn’t finished yet, but he has it now. If he really was in a rush to use it, he'd finish it, and find some other poor human to use it. But he said he can't use it without me, after sending us after you. He can't finish it either.”

“That's an interesting theory,” Sen said, nodding her paper head. “You could be right.”

“Didn’t Maneki make the Summer Driver?” Aki asked.

Rou shook his head. “Ki and I made it. It was destroyed, but it’s probable that the parts were whole enough that Maneki was simply able to reassemble them into working order,” Rou explained. “And we don’t know if the Summer Driver is corrupted in some way.”

“He does seem to be incapable of speaking intelligibly when he’s Summer,” I said. “At first I thought it was because of that Indigo ReMare, the moth one, who stole languages. Nisei did get tossed around by him before he had actually transformed.”

“But we defeated the moth,” Aki said, and I nodded.

“I’m not sure if that’s the reason, or if there’s something more complicated involved. I do not know how humans who are possessed by ReMares work, and I do not think I care to.” Sen said, sounding offended by the very fact that one existed in the world. “But either way, I believe Rou has the right of it.”

“I think we can get the driver back. If there’s a way you can make a cartridge or a chip or something that can be added in quickly on the battle field, then that might be better than trying to make a whole new one. I don’t think we even have the time to do that right now,” Rou said grimly. “It took us long enough as it is.”

“That sounds incredibly dangerous, but yes, it can be done,” Sen said.

“Most of the stuff we've done lately is,” I said, not sure if I was amused or just... very tired.

Meiko shot me a glare. I shrugged. Heroics were dangerous.

“That reminds me. You told us we shouldn’t ask about what caused the mountain to go all shadow realm like that, but you said you’d explain later,” Akito said.

Sen was quiet for a moment. “I do not like to talk about it, even here, but it should be marginally safer.” She paused for a long moment, as if thinking about what she wanted to say. “You know of the Bright Lady, correct?”

“Yes, of course,” I said.

“Of course, she says, when she had to see my memories to remember.” Rou rolled his eyes.

“Shush you,” I said, swatting his shoulder.

Sen didn’t seem to know what to make of our bantering, so she just politely ignored it. “The Bright Lady is the first spirit to be born in Oara. She came with the first humans here. She is basically the patron goddess of this city. Not that any of the spirits are gods, but I do believe that humans revere her as such.”

“That makes sense,” I said. We had made offerings to her at the temple after all.

“There is another who is almost as old as she,” she started.

“The Dark One,” Rou said quietly.

“Don't speak of him so directly,” Sen scolded.

“I've heard the name before. Is he the ReMare's leader?” I asked.

Sen was quiet for a moment. “The Bright Lady and the second one protected the spirits and humans here, and Oara prospered. It was a time of beautiful nature and thriving humanity coinciding. Blots existed, but they were harmless. They made people forget, but as it is natural to forget things. They didn’t hunt like they do now. And they didn’t destroy Spirits either,” Sen paused, and looked towards the window. “But… Something happened twenty years ago, and he… He became a ReMare, the first one, and shed his light. He became a being of pure darkness and he dragged other spirits down with him.”

“Why though?” Meiko asked, frowning.

“I do not understand the reasoning. I only know that it happened and that the results were terrible.”

“So, this has been going on for twenty years?” I sighed, “That’s longer than what we’ve been fighting for, isn’t it? We would have been eight or something. I wasn't Year all the way back then, was I?”

“No,” Sen said. “I don't believe so.”

“So who knows how much this city has forgotten,” Aki sighed. “Or how many people have died like Togo.”

“An entire section of the city is lifeless,” Sen said.

It felt like someone had draped a wet blanket over us. I shook it off. “One step at a time. We’ll get Ki and the other spirits back, and we’ll show Maneki what she gets for messing with us. Then will fix everything else.”

“Sounds like my kind of plan!” Akito said, regaining at least a semblance of good cheer. Meiko agreed in a more reserved fashion, nodding seriously. Rou had already turned back to his computer.

The next morning we all went to work. Rou and Sen worked on the driver and Memokas, while Meiko and I brought the news to the city. Aki busied himself in his restaurant.

Nisei brought the message to each of us. He put a pink origami fox on Rou’s bike, and stole three spicy curry breads from Aki’s pantry, leaving behind a fox there as well.

And he brought one to the station. He looked incredibly sullen, like a child being forced to apologize. He dropped it on the table between Meiko and me. “Ki has agreed to your terms. November eleventh. Be at the temple on Mt. Shodai.”

“You don’t like this plan,” I said, looking at him. He looked away sharply.

“I do not want to give away my power. Not for him. He is already strong, and Maneki actually likes him. It isn’t fair,” Nisei sulked. “I am the only human ReMare, the only one that can transform, and all I am is a useful tool to torment Akito-san. I do not want Ki to gain power at my expense.” He glanced at us. “He is blinded by power. He has plans. So. Many. Plans.” He grit his teeth. “He plans to destroy Maneki, but I don't think for a second that he wouldn't destroy me if I wasn't useful. Or you.”

I was surprised that he offered that information. I stared at him for a long moment. “I see… What do you think we should do?”

He looked at me in surprise, as if he hadn’t realized he had let down his guard. He stammered a over his words for a moment, before shaking his head roughly. “Never mind. I have to go,” Nisei said, running off.

“That was odd,” Meiko said. “I'm getting awfully tired of double agents and spies.”

“Yeah.” I sighed. “At least Nisei does seem to be more trusting though.” I showed her my phone, where Aki had sent me a flurry of messages excitedly celebrating that Nisei had stolen food from him, like a distrustful animal had just graced him with permission to pet it after long patience.

“He does. But that doesn’t change the fact that he’s been stealing,” Meiko said, frowning. Like that same distrustful animal had also eaten all of her shoes.

“We’ll work on that. One step at a time,” I said, grinning.

On November eleventh, we gathered at Momiji Café. On one of the tables, Rou had arranged a bunch of equipment. The three Drivers were aligned neatly, with the two new Memokas above them. Sharky swam around, eager for a fight, while Arachne rested patiently. Rou had a box next to him with what looked like a small ink cartridge for a printer. Rou handed over the two Memokas to me. “These are 1111 and Gift,” Rou said. He pronounced the first one, the one that was a rich chocolaty brown, as “Elevens” and it felt warm in my hand. The other was a forest green, like a pine tree.

“It’s like it wants me to use it,” I said, referring to 1111.

“It might. It’s the Memoka for November,” Rou said, nodding. “It might be lucky today.”

“Anything for me, Jiro, my darling?” Aki asked, cuddling up to Rou and batting his eyelashes at him.

Rou gave him a look. “Unless you can convince the Bright Lady to give you another upgrade like before, I can’t. Sen did help me tune up everyone’s drivers, though.”

“That’ll do,” Aki said, satisfied, and ruffled Rou’s hair, and grabbing his driver out of the pile of equipment.

“Meiko, for you,” Rou said, handing over her driver.

She nodded solemnly.

He nodded and handed over my driver to me. “Here. And finally,” he picked up the cartridge. “This goes into my driver. If I can’t get it from Ki, then get it by force and bring it to me as soon as you can. I’ll fight too.”

“Be careful,” I said. “We're not going to lose anyone else, got it?”

Sharky tugged a lock of Rou’s hair, and he smiled and tried to brush the shark origami bot away. “Got it,” Rou agreed and we left the café. It was foggy outside, and chilly. It felt like stepping into an in-between space, where the world hadn't loaded in yet, and anything could happen.

We drove carefully up the mountain to the temple. The twisting mountain roads were eerie in the fog. Not forbidding, like the other mountain. There was just this sense of stepping into hallowed grounds.

The temple itself was above the fog, and the morning sun shone bright. We parked and stepped up to the shrine. Sharky pulled on the rope for the bell and swam through the air around us. Arachne rode on Meiko’s shoulder, waving her forelegs at the temple. We paid our respects and as we turned around, Ki was standing at the other side of the clearing. He looked the same as he did at the Halloween party, his pink lines glowing intensely against the inky black. “It’s been a long time, hasn’t it? Since we met here,” Ki said softly, watching us fondly. “I thought it would be appropriate.”

“I guess?” Aki said, raising an eyebrow, and putting his hands behind his head, pretending to be relaxed. “It’s not like we remember it.”

“That is true,” Ki said, amused. “But it’s appropriate nonetheless. And Rou and Meiki remember, don’t you?”

“Yes,” Rou said simply. “Let’s do this. Give Meiki the spirits.”

“I’d prefer to merge with you first,” Ki said slowly, as if each word was a carefully placed brick.

“Your other option is to give me the driver first,” Rou said flatly.

Ki tutted and shook his head sadly. “I’m afraid I can’t do that, Rou.”

“If neither of us can trust each other with going first, then this is going to be a stalemate and you’re wasting my time. Year can just kick Summer’s ass later and get back what we want. This isn’t in your favor,” Rou said, his chest puffed out and he seemed like he was trying to make himself look intimidating. Sharky bared her teeth, floating above Rou’s shoulder and backing him up.

“Fine. I wouldn't want to waste your time,” Ki said, and clapped his hands. “Summer. Give them the spirits they asked for.”

Summer came skulking out from behind a tree, the slashes of colors missing from his armor. He stepped towards me, holding a silver globe of light in one hand and an indigo one in the other.

“Rou? Shall we?” Ki said, and put the spring driver on his waist. It looked a little more finished now. It had a plastic casing, but it didn’t light up when Ki put it on.

Rou stepped forward, and reached out to him. My fingers twitched towards a Memoka, but it wasn't time yet. I had to let him try. I stepped towards Summer to receive the spirits.

Then Summer shrieked and pressed both of the spirits back into his belt, and launched himself at me.

I scrambled to raise up my Time Driver, and slashed the brown Memoka across it. “Henshin!” I said, and pressed it against my waist.

Quick rhythmic drums played, and the belt announced, “Good! Good! ELEVENS! Go!” Bars of brown light dropped down around me, knocking Summer back until my transformation completed. My armor appeared, chocolate brown with cream colored accents. The cape had four large ones across it, crammed into as much space as the cape would allow.

Ki reached forward to grab Rou’s hand, but Rou snatched it back, stumbling back a few feet. Sharky snapped at Ki, distracting him from Rou. I punched Summer a few times, and it felt good, with a satisfying rhythm. Summer stumbled back and Fall and Winter engaged him. I saw Ki knock Sharky aside, and shifted his stance to chase after Rou. Arachne threw a web under Ki's feet, but it looked like it was already crumbling. I ran towards him, and I felt as long as I stepped with just the right timing, I could go as fast as I wanted.

I intercepted Ki, hitting him with a rhythmic punching combo. Ki staggered back and disappeared, reappearing a few feet back. “I see you picked another quick Memoka,” he said, rubbing one hand across his mouth. “A good choice. That will make this a little bit more interesting.”

“What the hell is your deal, Ki?” I asked.

“Come and get me, 1111,” Ki said, ignoring my question and waving at me invitingly. “Or I’ll go after him again.” He glanced over at Rou, who glared back at him.

I made an irritated noise before rushing at Ki. This time he was able to match my punches, blocking easily. It threw off my timing and I slowed down. Ki took the opportunity to grab my arm and throw me down. I rolled to my feet.

Summer and Deep Fall were fighting now, popping in and out of reality as they used their magic. Winter had abandoned the fight to stand near Rou, keeping guard with her sword out.

“Prism Charge, Complete!” my belt chimed, and I drew the Memoka. It split in two in my hands, and became two short batons of brown light. The weapons sort of looked a bit like two oversize Pocky sticks. “Prism Batons!”

Ki disappeared and reappeared in front of Winter. Winter startled, and she tried to slash Ki, but he disappeared again, stepping lightly on her wide blade. She shoved the sword sideways to knock him off, but he just stepped lightly to the ground and grabbed a hold of Rou, who shouted out.

I swore, and raced to them, hitting Ki multiple times with the batons, and landing a final kick, which knocked him back a few paces. Rou slumped to the ground as Ki let go of him. “Rou, are you okay?” I said, putting myself in between him and the fox ReMare.

He groaned, and sat up a little. Ki disappeared again, and I could see that he was trying to zip around me and Winter. I rushed to intercept him, blocking him with a flurry of attacks. Ki took a step back and materialized a pair of short knives. He used them to block the batons. They made a zippy sizzling sound when they struck my batons, and it made it easier to feel the rhythm. He was grinning, his eyes bright, as if this was the most fun he had had in ages.

And in a sort of complicated way, I felt the same way. It was satisfying to fight at such a fast paced rhythm. We half danced around the clearing, and it was as if there was nothing else going on. Arachne occasionally cast a net under Ki's feet, but it was timed well enough that I took it as a moment to hit him with both batons.

We were close to evenly matched like this. I felt like I could keep going forever, increasing in power as long as I kept the rhythm. And Ki was frowning, starting to get tired. Or at least that's what I thought. Startling me, he shoved me back, jumping away to crouch on a low stone lantern near the temple, which lit up pink as he touched it. It broke my pacing, and suddenly I had to catch my breath, Both of us stood there, chests heaving and arms feeling heavy. “I don’t see why you’re fighting back this hard, Ki. We thought you’d want to come back to us,” I said. I could see out of the corner of my eye that Winter had tackled and pinned Summer down as the fight had passed too closely to Rou, and Deep Fall was squatting in front of him.

“Little bro, give us the spirits. We don’t want to hurt you,” Deep Fall said lightly.

“Speak for yourself,” Winter grumbled, leaning out of the way to avoid getting punched in the face by Summer’s flailing fists.

Summer snarled, and his form crumpled under Winter’s weight, and he appeared a few feet away as he shed a shell of armor.

“I have my reasons, 1111,” Ki said, straightening up and shifting back into a fighting stance.

From behind me, Rou laughed. It sounded a bit wild, like someone who had just survived a near brush with death. Both of us turned to look. He was standing, legs braced wide, his hair disheveled. In one hand, he had the Spring Driver raised up in one hand.

Ki’s eyes widened, and he checked his waist in surprise. The driver was gone. “When did you? When I grabbed you?” he asked, his voice a complicated mix of wonder and annoyance. “Well, it’s not going to work. It’s not finished. I couldn't finish it.”

Rou raised up his other hand, with the ink cartridge that he had made with Sen. With a wild grin, he inserted the cartridge into the driver, and there was a satisfying click. “Henshin!” he shouted, and pressed it up against his waist. The belt looped around him.

“Spring Forth!” The belt chimed, playing a flurry of music that sounded light and bouncy. A pink, gold, and purple sigil appeared in front of Rou, and passed over him. Spring’s armor appeared on his body. It was a shiny purple, except for the gloves and boots, and part of the chest, which were pink, with bright gold lines on the chest and the middle of the arms and legs that were a bit like the dagged edges of a cherry blossom petal. His eyes, golden and glittery, were the same shape and also outlined in pink, but they stuck up away from the helmet in a way that suggested fox ears. At the back of his belt there was a big pink ribbon tied into a fluttering bow.

Spring took a moment to look at his hands. He clenched them into fists, and looked up at Ki. “I’m not going to sit on the sidelines anymore,” he said, his voice low.

“Excellent,” Ki grinned, and launched himself at Spring. Spring pumped both fists down, and two wrist mounted blades of pink light appeared. They clashed, at a much faster speed than what I had been fighting Ki at, their energies resonating with each other. They knew each other better than anyone, and it showed in the way they moved around each other. I had thought I had been dancing with Ki before, but this made that look like an awkward first dance at a junior high school.

And I swear I had only been distracted for a moment, but that was enough. Summer was suddenly next to me, crashing into me. I struggled to fight back, but his wild attacking style didn’t much match up with 1111’s rhythm based attack. I managed to get a couple of hits in, but because they weren’t backed with the rhythm, I might as well have hit him with a foam baseball bat instead of a heavy wooden one.

He knocked one of my hands away, and one of the batons went skittering off to the side. Deep Fall intervened, slashing at Summer with his black swords, and Summer defended himself with sharp whips of his nunchaku Sharky, despite her injuries, bit at Summer, distracting him further. I had a moment to get back to my feet and scramble after the baton.

Winter was helping Spring now. She was downright glacial compared to both of them, but Spring kept leading Ki over near her, where she was able to slash at Ki. Deep green scars appeared on his inky hakama, and it gave Spring a moment to regroup and launch another attack. Arachne cast another purple web below Ki. It slowed him down for a brief moment, long enough for Spring to get two swift stabs in with his wrist knives. Ki broke free, and roundhouse kicked Spring away, stepping neatly away from Winter's range.

Summer shoved Deep Fall away, and roared. Summer disappeared with his magic, and reappeared in front of me, arm holding the nunchaku above his head, and he spun it swiftly before bringing it down on my head.

I staggered as my vision swam at the force of the contact. He hit me against the chest and arms with the nunchaku too, for good measure. I couldn’t get a good read on his attacks, couldn’t make myself move. He reached for my belt and grabbed a handful of Memokas. Deep Fall appeared next to him, and swung down hard with his sword. Summer’s armor crumpled as he shed it, and he appeared next to Spring. Summer hit him solidly in the chest and sent Spring sprawling.

Ki skidded to a halt. Summer held up the three Memokas that he had stolen. “Alright. Let’s go,” Ki said. He splashed into a pool of ink, disappearing into the Under. Summer glanced back at us, before following him down. I slumped to my knees, and wiped the driver clear.

“Erase, bye bye!” the belt chimed, and my armor disappeared.

Fall and Winter both erased their transformations, and Aki stood up and ran over to me. “You alright? That was a rough hit.”

I rubbed my forehead, where I was starting to have a splitting headache. “I don't know. Probably.”

Spring was jumping around, shadow boxing and laughing.

“You’re going to tire yourself out, Spring,” Meiko scolded, and walked over to me. “I hate being so slow.”

“You did fine. That could have went a lot worse,” I said. Spring took Meiko’s advice and erased his transformation. As soon as it dropped, he swayed on his feet.

“Damn, that was amazing,” Rou said, stumbling over to us. “Did you see that? Did you see how fast I was?”

“Both of you looked like you were having fun,” Akito said, wryly.

“We didn’t get to fight for a long time,” Rou said, rubbing the back of his neck, and had the grace to look a little guilty, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. He got a couple of my Memokas though,” I said, standing up slowly. My vision spun briefly, and I held my head again. “It looks like I lost Obon, New, and Sakura.”

“I told you not to lose New,” Meiko said mildly.

“Sorry, I didn’t think he’d bash me in the head,” I said sarcastically back.

“I know, I know,” Meiko said, “Don’t worry about it, okay? We’ll get them all back.”

“We did get the driver back, at least,” Rou said, leaning against Aki.

“Yeah, but he got his hands on you, so you probably lost some memories,” Aki said, and glanced between me and Rou, both of us looking a bit worse for wear. “I think we’re going to need to share rides tonight. I want to get both of you home and resting.”

“Yeah, fair. I’m starving,” Rou said, and yawned.

“And you look like shit, Jiro,” Aki added with mock sweetness.

“Thanks,” Rou said dryly.

As we left, I stopped to drop the pink fox origami that Nisei had gave me on the alter of the temple, before getting our rides set up. Meiko drove Rou’s bike, with mine attached as the side car, which I road in. Aki drove the Harvester with Rou clinging to his back.

The sun had burnt off the fog, and it was starting to get warmer as we drove back to the lab.

Once there, Aki did a quick check to make sure I didn’t have a concussion, waving his fingers in front of my face to see if my eyes would follow them, and then shining a small flashlight into them. He decided I was fine, and gave me a cool compress to put on my forehead. “Take it easy for a little while, but I think you’ll be alright.”

“Thanks,” I said, and drank some of the hot tea that Meiko made.

“Good,” Aki glanced towards the kitchen, where there was sounds of pans rattling around and the large fridge door slamming shut. “I’m going to get that boy out of my kitchen.” He hurried into the kitchen and shoved Rou out. “Out, out. I’ll make you something, but you will not be ruining my system, Jiro!”

“Fine, fine! I’ll go!” Rou grumbled, eating a cherry filled bun. “Jeeze. Your system sucks anyway, Akkun.”

“You're one to talk!”

“What Memokas do you have left?” Meiko asked me, rubbing my shoulders as I relaxed. I could have melted into a puddle in her hands, but her question brought me back into focus.

“Um… Let’s see… Year, thankfully, and Golden. And I have 1111 and the green one… Gift, I think. Oh, I have Star too,” I said, spreading them out on the table in front of me. “It doesn’t seem like a lot now…”

“It’s a good balance though. 1111 is fast, and strong if you’ve got into a good rhythm. Golden is pretty strong too… And Gift should be even better defensively than Silver. And Star can Jump and move pretty well,” Rou said, as he retreated from the kitchen. “So at least you’re not just stuck with a bunch of fast, but light weight ones, or slow power houses.”

“Like me,” Meiko said wryly.

“I know. I just worry, because now Summer is even stronger,” I said. “And we don’t know what Ki is thinking. I don’t think Nisei really knows what Ki is doing either. There’s way too much up in the air right now, and I hate it.” Or at least, that's what I said. My feelings were becoming complicated. I had moments of sheer joy, fighting with Ki and Summer, like a kite on the wind. And it was exciting, trying to figure out what he would do next. Even the pain from my injuries didn't shake the feeling. Already it was fading. I could see bruises on my arms yellowing and disappearing before my eyes. I pulled down my sleeves, to avoid looking.

It wasn't as if I lied. I could see how much the whole situation was pressing on the others. Ki being corrupted weighed heavily on Rou. Akito was concerned about his brother, despite how many times he had burned us. Meiko was quietly furious about having to continue dealing with double crossing and unclear loyalties. And I shared in these worries. I truly did.

But it wasn't everything. And that frightened me.

“I am also getting real sick of fighting people who are supposedly supposed to be friends,” Meiko agreed. “Especially since they're all fast.”

“I think I’ve figured it out though,” Rou said.

“How? We keep running into his traps, and and coming out of it with such a mixed bag of results,” Meiko said. “He's feeding us tidbits while picking our pockets.”

Rou shook his head. “He said he got the idea from Akito, didn't he? Akito still helped us when he was trying to get close to Nisei. I've played this game with Ki before. I honestly think he has a plan and things will work out eventually.”

“Which is Jiro-speak for he doesn’t really have a clue, but he trusts that damn fox so we gotta deal with it,” Aki said, coming out of the kitchen with plates of food.

“Which is big talk, coming from a guy who trusts a screaming punch monster who keeps stealing from us,” Meiko muttered.

“I think he stole more curry bread today,” Aki said, grinning.

“Didn’t your mother teach you not to feed strays?” she asked.

“Nope,” Aki said, shaking his head.

 

 


	28. Light

I didn't sleep after that. At first I thought it was because of my headache, but the goose egg on my forehead disappeared after a night, and by the end of the week I hadn’t slept at all. I didn’t feel worse for it, which almost worried me more than if I had felt like complete garbage.

If you had asked me a week before, I might have welcomed the ability to get by without sleep. It would have been better than the nightmares I had been having. But being left alone to my own devices while the rest of the Mei Brigade slept had me restless.

I got caught up on paperwork. I cleaned my apartment top to bottom. I practiced calligraphy. I exercised. I wandered the streets. I danced in my apartment until Meiko complained that I was being too loud.

I stared at my own ceiling. I stared at her ceiling, not waking her.

I was bored.

Early Sunday evening, I wandered the streets until I ended up at Akito's .

He was wiping down counters in the restaurant when I pushed the door open.“Hey, Akito-sensei,” I said, trying to make my voice a playful complaint. I hoped if I made light of the problem he wouldn't fuss too much.

I failed. He immediately looked up, alarmed. “What's wrong?”

I backpedaled. “Nothing, I just… Would you hang out with me tonight?” I asked. “Meiko's at her parents, and I don't want to be alone.”

“Something's bothering you,” Aki said.

“No,” I objected.

“You called me _sensei,_ ” he said, “In private.”

“Should I call you Akkun instead?” I said trying to make the banter distract from the problem.

“If you want,” he said, raising an eyebrow. I think only his mom and very rarely Rou ever called him that. When I didn't take the bait, he sighed. “I wouldn't say no to you, kiddo. What do you wanna do?”

“Can we watch a really stupid movie?” I asked.

“Your wish is my command,” Aki said, grinning. He set up the projector and I stole the colorful quilt from his bedroom and curled up on the couch in the cafe. He sat down and joined me, as an old B movie about vampires from Mars kidnapping Santa started playing. I rested my head on his shoulder, as he made quips about the movie's nonsense. When it ended, Akito nudged me, thinking I was asleep. “Do you wanna go to bed?”

“Can't,” I said.

“You can't?” he said, pulling away to look at me.

I sighed. “I haven't slept since we fought Ki. I'm just not tired. At all. I even stopped drinking coffee and tea, in case caffeine was making it worse.” Which had been one of the last things I had enjoyed consuming, mostly because they were hot and I didn't particularly expect coffee to taste good in the first place.

Aki stared at me for a long moment, before putting a hand on my forehead. Then he took my wrist to check my pulse., “Your vitals seem normal. I'd want to get you a CAT scan to make sure you didn't damage something in your brain when Summer hit you, but...”

“But I already don't eat. I'm already barely human,” I finished, pulling the blanket over my head. I was starting to feel like I was chained up like a dog outside while my human family laughed and played inside.

“I’m sorry, kiddo,” Aki said, wrapping his arms around me and the blanket. We were quiet for a long while. “Do you want to see if Sen has anything to say about it? She seems to know more about the mechanics of this stuff than we do.”

“Yeah, I think so,” I said quietly, trying not to let tears make my voice warble.

Upstairs, the room was messier than usual. Rou had a bunch of papers scattered around the room, and he had pushed a bunch of things aside to make room for a massive sheet of silver origami paper. Sen watched, perched on the top of his laptop, as he carefully folded the large paper.

Aki tutted distastefully as he stepped over a stack of papers and picked up Rou’s jacket and put it on the back of Rou’s chair. “What are you doing, Jiro?”

“Making a new origami body for Sen. She’s small,” Rou said distractedly as he worked.

“I am not used to being this tiny,” Sen said apologetically to Aki.

“It’s fine, I figured he would make a better one eventually,” Aki said reassuringly. “But that’s not what I meant. This place is kinda a disaster, Jiro.”

Rou paused for a second, and put a hand over his chest. He shook his head and dropped the hand. “It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.” Rou waved the concern away. “What did you want?”

“We wanted to talk to Sen, actually,” Aki said.

“What can I do for you?” Sen asked, perking up a little bit.

I glanced at Rou, feeling guilty. I didn't want to bring more attention to my problems, but I had to have answers. “I haven’t been sleeping lately. It hasn’t been bothering me, I just haven’t been tired,” I said.

“It has been bothering her, obviously, or she wouldn’t be asking for help,” Aki said, crossing his arms and using his stern doctor’s voice.

“Well, I meant like, it doesn’t make me sleepy or sluggish like if I normally stayed up all night,” I said.

“Hmm…” Sen looked thoughtful.

“She also hasn’t been eating for months. Sharky thinks she’s been getting energy from memories like a spirit, so we’re wondering if maybe this is the same thing,” Aki explained.

“I DID SAY THAT!” Sharky shouted from the kitchen. She zoomed in and swam circles through the air around the large table in the middle of the room. She had recently regained the ability to talk, and she had been fascinated with Sen, much to Sen’s fond bemusement.

“You did! That was a very clever theory,” Sen said, and Sharky bobbed happily at the praise. “You have used a lot of different color Memokas, and it is possible that some of those energies are still within you,” Sen said thoughtfully.

I dug my fingernails into my arms as I held myself. At least I could still feel that. “I don’t have that many Memokas right now though.”

“But you have used most of them, correct?” Sen asked.

“I think so. Nine of them, at least, not counting Year,” I said. “Is that’s what causing this? If I use more of them, will I lose more stuff? Am I becoming a spirit?”

Sen fluttered her wings. “I do not know what will happen. You are the first champion of the Bright Lady. It is not something that is well documented. The only thing that concerns me is that others who have close spiritual ties do not have this problem. Rou was with Ki for many years.” She glanced at him, and then back at me. “Your situation is unique.” She paused, and spoke very carefully, “But you are not becoming a spirit. Or a ReMare, for that matter.”

Aki frowned. “Are you saying that just so that she doesn’t stop using new Memokas?” he demanded, and I glanced at him, because I had been thinking that same thing.

“The Bright Lady does not share her energy lightly. She is much much stronger than other spirits. Her energy might affect humans more strongly than other spirits. Ki is strong, but it's like comparing a boulder to a mountain. If you wish to stop being her champion, you must defeat the dark one. And I am certain you will not be able to defeat the dark one without all twelve Memokas,” Sen said, lecturing us like a stern schoolmistress. She had not denied it.

The room was quiet for a moment. Selfish. The thought rang in my head, and I shook it away. I was not going to let my city fall apart. “Alright. The situation is fine then,” I said, trying to be confident. Aki frowned at me. I shrugged and smiled. “It’s not like it’s actually hurting me.”

“If you say so,” Aki said slowly. “But I will definitely try and find a way to fix it.”

“Thanks,” I said. “I knew I could count on you.” I gave him a fist bump.

We sat there for a little while as Rou finished the origami crane. This one was about the size of a notebook instead of small enough to fit in the palm of my hand. “Come here,” he said, and Sen dutifully fluttered over to the bigger body. “I think all you need to do is touch it. I haven’t ever transferred someone who wasn’t injured before, but it should wor-“ he broke off into a violent coughing fit, and he clutched his chest.

Aki was at his side immediately, one hand on his back patting gently. “Breath, just breath slowly,” he said. “Meiki, Sharky, there should be an inhaler somewhere in this mess. Can you look for it?”

“YES!” Sharky shouted, and I scrambled to my feet to look for it. Aki got Rou breathing in ragged slow breaths, when I found the inhaler under a stack of wires.

“Here it is,” I said, passing it to Aki, who gave it to Rou. Rou took a few deep hits off of it, and his breathing regulated itself.

“Are you alright now?” Aki asked, two fingers on Rou’s wrist to check his pulse.

“I’m fine,” Rou spat, pulling his wrist away.

“I thought you were stabilized,” Aki said. “You were doing so well for ages.”

“It’s nothing. Every now and then it gets me. It’s nothing new,” Rou said, crossing his arms, and stepping away. “Sen, sorry. Go ahead and enter the new origami.”

She bobbed, and touched the large metallic origami crane. The old one fluttered to the ground as she abandoned it, and the larger one twitched and stretched as it came to life. Sharky bopped Sen’s wing. Sharky looked small compared to her now. “YOU ARE BIG NOW! WOW!”

“She used the same amount of paper as you did, Sharky. It’s just more complicated to make a shark,” Rou said, as if attempting to stave off a request to make Sharky bigger.

“CAUSE SHARKS ARE THE BEST!” Sharky announced.

“They certainly are interesting, at least,” Sen said, amused.

“Jiro,” Aki said sternly.

“So is Meiko not here tonight? I was thinking we could go looking for Summer tomorrow,” Rou said, turning to me.

“She’s got parent stuff today,” I said. “So she’s busy.”

“Jiro,” Aki repeated.

“Aha. I should have guessed,” Rou said, “You don’t usually complain about not eating and stuff when she’s around.”

“Rou,” Aki said, looming behind Rou as best as his short frame could manage.

“We talk about it sometimes,” I said defensively.

“Do you visit your parents? I know Meiko and Aki do, but you don’t really talk about them much. Not since we put sensor origami by their apartment,” Rou chattered, still ignoring Akito.

“I talk to them!” I said, offended. And then I thought about it for a moment, and realized I couldn’t remember the actual last time I had spoken to them. Or seen them. “It’s just been busy.”

“Meiji Rou-san, do not ignore me,” Akito said, grabbing the top of Rou’s head. “You are to tell me when you have these attacks. Each time.”

“Alright, alright!” Rou said, ducking his head, “I promise.”

“I’m serious,” Aki said.

“It’s not because you transformed, is it?” I asked. Rou shot me a look that might as well have been a gunshot. “Well, you said you were not as healthy without Ki. And transforming used to make me feel like the bottom of a garbage can, and I’m in good shape.”

“Hmm,” Aki said, frowning.

Rou rounded on him. “I am NOT going to let you keep me from fighting. We’ll get Ki back and then it’ll be fine again! You’ll see!”

Aki shook his head, and tutted. “Jiro, Jiro, Jiro. Calm down before you trigger another attack. I am just surprised at how quick you are to change your tune when it’s you wanting to fight past your limits and not me.”

“That’s entirely different! And I let you do it in the end, didn’t I?” Rou said, fuming.

“I know. Just know that I’ll hold this over your head foreeeeever,” Aki said, grinning maliciously.

“Are the two of you racing to see who can be the most self-destructive?” Sen asked mildly. “It is not a very intelligent path to walk.”

“No. Both of them will take care of themselves,” I said sternly, glaring at the two boys. “I need both of you. Please.”

“What are you gonna do?” Aki asked, “Tattle?”

“Maybe. I’m sure Meiko’s got some words for idiots on the Mei Brigade who don’t listen to their bodies,” I said, knowing that it would get a reaction out of Akito at least.

I wasn’t disappointed. “You wouldn't dare!” Aki gasped.

“She wouldn't. She doesn't want Meiko to know about her not sleeping,” Rou said, throwing the threat back at me.

“Not true.” I said, sticking my tongue out at him. “She knows I've had trouble sleeping.” Not the full extent, but I'd tell her if it meant keeping my other idiots out of trouble. Not that Meiko had any better luck stopping any of us from pushing too hard.

Bullheadedness ran strong in the Mei Brigade, I'll admit it.

Aki’s cellphone rang, and he put a finger to his mouth and walked over to the small kitchen to answer it. “Hi, mama, what’s up? Uhuh. Yeah? Okay. I think we can all come.” He hung up his phone and walked back over. “It looks like Mom decided to have an impromptu charity brunch for the Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital, and she wants to know if we can be there tomorrow morning.”

“Of course,” I said, glad to have a distraction, although I wished it was not on the other side of night. It was way too easy to get stuck thinking about problems when I couldn’t do anything about it. All I could do is resolve to protect Aki and Rou a little better. My problems would have to wait.

“It sounds like a thing a ReMare would show up to,” Rou agreed.”We should get some...” he trailed off and realized I couldn't rest.

“READ ME A STORY!” Sharky demanded.

“Sure. Don't worry, you guys need your sleep. Good night.” Both of them settled down upstairs on futons, while I curled up on the leather couch, quietly reading books to Sharky off of my ereader app on my phone.

In the morning, Aki made us dress up a little, but we were on our way quickly. I sent a message to Meiko saying that we might need to call her in as backup, but for now things were fine. She sent me back a quick text that just said ok, and then a second text with a heart emoji. I grinned and sent her a whole slew of heart emoji back, glad to have a moment’s distraction.

The event was held at the community center in a big meeting hall. It was a fairly generic room, with bland patterned carpet and tables draped in white linen. There was a small stage with a podium, and a slideshow running of pictures that Akito’s mother had apparently found of the hospital in its heyday. The room was bustling with important looking people in suits. Akito’s mother spotted us and she hurried over. “Akkun! Thank you for coming at such short notice! Your dad is here!” She beamed as if she had offered him cake.

Akito smiled, but something in his eyes looked pinched. “Is he? Well, that’s great, mom. Thanks for letting me know,” he said.

“You and your friends can sit over here,” she said, directing us to a table near the back. “Make sure you say hello to him, dear.”

“Of course,” Akito said breezily, before leading us over to the table in the back. “Fuck,” he said as soon as we were out of earshot.

“That bad?” I asked.

“Mm. He did not approve of my career choices. Wanted me to be a politician. And then when I proved to be a goddamn prodigy at med school, he acted like it was his idea all along,” Akito said. It looked like it took him considerable effort to unclench his teeth enough to explain it.

“And he wasn’t happy about him starting a restaurant either,” Rou added. “Or about me.”

“Well, he doesn’t actually know about you now, but yeah, he certainly doesn’t approve of that either. It got worse when Togo disappeared from their memories,” Akito said, crumpling his name card absently. I patted his shoulder sympathetically, and dipped into a memory on accident.

Akito was across the room from a middle aged business man that I didn’t recognize. Akito was picking up broken pieces of pottery, refusing steadily to look at the man’s face. “You have to protect the Meiaki name, Akito,” the man said sternly. “You can not disappoint this family.”

“Not all Meiaki are related,” Akito said slowly, picking up the dustbin and slamming it into a garbage can before walking out.

I pulled my hand away from Akito like it had burnt me. I stared at my hand for a second. That had never happened before. I had fallen into them memories contained in a ReMare or a spirit, but never just a regular human.

“Are you alright?” Rou asked, watching me through narrowed eyes.

“I… yeah. Sorry, Akito. I might have seen one of your memories,” I said, feeling guilty.

“You did?” Akito asked, his eyes widening to a look of alarm.

“I didn’t mean to!” I said, “You were cleaning up a broken dish and you said the thing you’ve said a couple of times about not all Meiaki being related…”

Akito relaxed a little. “Oh. Alright.” He was quiet for a moment. “It’s weird that you can do that.”

“I know,” I said, wrapping my arms around myself to avoid touching anyone.

Rou patted my head. “Don’t be like that. We know you can’t help it.”

“Yeah. Just let me know what you see, alright?” Aki said, “It's not like I have anything to hide. Not from you. But I'd appreciate a heads up.”

I nodded. “Thanks…”

More people entered the room. I saw Katsumi-san across the room, wearing a purple suit. Akito's mother directed her towards our table, and Katsumi hesitated as she neared us. “Hello,” she said warily.

“Hi, Katsumi-san,” I said, smiling at her, although I couldn’t help at glancing in Rou’s direction. If Akito was already on edge about his father, it would be worse if Rou started in on his own mother. But his expression didn’t change. He nodded politely at her, and went back to talking to Akito about the hospital.

Katsumi slowly sat down, seeming a little confused. “I was not sure you three would be here, but I suppose you started this little movement, didn’t you?” she asked me.

“Yeah, but it was actually a last minute thing,” I said. “We just found out about it last night.”

“Ah,” Katsumi-san said, glancing at Rou again.

“Can I help you?” he asked, catching her glance. “I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Meiji Rou,” he said pleasantly enough.

“Oh. Um. I am Meiji Katsumi,” she said, startled, and she glanced at me in askance.

I was busy staring at Rou though. It surprised me that that was what Ki would take from him. It was one of Rou’s major sources of stress, and one of the reasons he had wanted to fight so desperately. He wanted his family to acknowledge him.

“Hey, Jiro-chan, I think we figured out what you forgot,” Akito said lightly, putting an arm over Rou’s shoulders.

“Oh!” Katsumi said, surprised, but she also seemed to relax immediately afterwords.

“What? What are you talking about?” Rou said, bristling immediately.

“Aki, maybe let’s not make things worse right now,” I said carefully.

“Alright, alright, fine. If you say so. I’ll tell you later, Jiro,” Akito said, letting Rou go.

“Whatever,” Rou said, sullen.

“I suppose one of us had better fulfill the quota for arguing with family,” Akito said lightly as he spotted is father. “I’ll be right back. I have to do some greetings. If I’m not back in five minutes, you may need to come stop a murder.” He winked and walked over to the other side of the room. I could see his posture grow hard and ridged as he got closer to his father.

“Aren’t you glad I spared you that, Rou?” said a soft voice behind us, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. With one hand on both of our chairs, a person with a face that looked identical to Rou’s leaned in between us. “No distractions that way. Much less stressful,” he said, and then let go of the chairs and stood up. We turned to look at him. He looked exactly like Rou, except his hair and eyes were a brilliant and alarming shade of pink.

“Ki?” Rou asked, in disbelief.

“In the flesh, so to speak,” Ki said, amused by our reactions.

“There’s _two_ of you?” Katsumi-san said, mildly horrified. I wondered if she was worried that they would both start claiming to be her sons.

“Oh, no. I’m just borrowing his style. I got used to it, I suppose,” Ki said, waving his hands in denial.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“Same thing you are. I was invited,” he said lightly. “Is Meiko here? I’d much rather have all the players in one place tonight.”

“She’s busy,” I said.

“Call her in. You’ll need her,” Ki said, looking up and raising a hand in greeting to someone across the room. A very awkward looking Nisei dressed up in a tux bowed back, and some of the suits near him moved away, not sure why he was bowing.

“Listen-“ I said getting ready to berate him for thinking he could tell us what to do.

“I think it might be a good idea,” Rou said.

It took a moment to reverse tracks. I still wanted to yell at Ki. “Fine. I’ll text her,” I said.

“Good. It will start soon. You might want to keep an eye on your fancy politicians,” Ki said, nodding in the direction of Akito and his father, which seemed to be lowering the temperature to freezing in that corner of the room.

And with that he melted into the crowd and disappeared.

“Mind telling me now what you think he’s up to?” I asked Rou, still trying to figure out what that whole conversation was about.

“I…” Rou started, and then there was a wet noise as a hundred blots bubbled up around the entire perimeter of the room. Most of them had one or two colors, although none of them had any animal features. It was like what Sharky looked like before Anubis had called the other blots to merge with her to become a full-fledged ReMare.

The people in the room looked alarmed, and they started pushing towards the center. None of the blots chased after them, but instead they just maintained their positions around the room. Rou stood up, already getting his Spring Driver out.

“Wait!” Katsumi-san said, standing up, remembering him trying to use the Time Driver in the spring. “I told you before, you’d better not explode your stupid self all over an important event!”

He glanced at her, puzzled for a second. “I won’t,” he promised, and he put the driver onto his waist. “Henshin!”

“Spring Forth!” the belt chimed, and the sigil passed over him, leaving him in the purple and pink armor.

At the same time, on the stage, a larger inky form appeared. Maneki leaned against the podium, watching her captives gleefully. She acted more surprised than she really was, when she noticed Spring and me. “Oh! Hello there, darlings. You’re just the people I wanted to see!”

“This is bad,” I said, standing up slowly, my own driver in my hand. I instinctively went for the new Memoka, the green one.

“Is it really?” She purred, “See, I’ve been waiting for a chance to properly destroy you, and now is a good time. You see, I have been making something very interesting with dear Foxy, and I really wanted to try it out on you.” She pulled out her gun, with the weird claws at the end. This time there was a longer barrel and some slick side bar wings to it. She aimed it at me.

“Henshin!” I shouted, swiping the green Memoka across the Time Driver and placing it against my waist.

A flat panel of green light wrapped around me and formed a green box. “A GIFT for you on this special night!” The belt chimed, playing something that sounded like a cacophony of bells. The box fell open, and my armor appeared. This one was forest green with red trim, and the cape was solid green with a big red cross through it like the ribbon on a box. “Prism Charge Complete!” The belt announced, and I drew the Memoka. “Prism Shield!” it chimed, and the Memoka wrapped around my arm, and a big shield of green light appeared.

Maneki shot at me, and the red light splashed over my shield and dissipated. “That’s annoying,” she said, inspecting the gun for a moment. “Oh well. I’ll just take your shield and try again.” She shrugged, and her gun disappeared. Within seconds, she was rushing me. I braced myself behind the shield, but before the moment of impact, Spring punched her off course with his wrist blades. She staggered to the side and glared at him, the wound already healing. “Boy. Do not think you are even close to my league just because you stole yourself some armor. I will delight in cracking you open,” she said her tone serious, but her expression a wide grin. She turned away from me, and with a lazy flick of her hand, a dense pack of blots appeared around me, pressing in close. I found it hard to keep my balance with all of them shoving. I shoved back hard with my shield, but as soon as one stumbled away, another took its place.

Maneki was stalking down Spring, who at least had the good sense to run away from her angry pursuit. It wasn’t enough though. She summoned another bunch of blots to block his way. They rose up in front of him everywhere he turned, until the last place he could go was into the crowd of people. I saw him stare at their frightened faces and he turned around to face Maneki. “Good boy,” she purred.

I heard Deep Fall’s transformation rather than seeing it, and in a moment, he appeared at my back, slicing away at the press of blots. “Thanks!” I said, and I shoved them back more aggressively with my shield, until they scattered.

“I’ll take care of the blots. Get Spring out of there!” Aki demanded.

I nodded, and I saw him pop in and out of his magic, taking care of the maze of blots that Maneki had summoned to trap Spring. I took a more straightforward approach, and crashed into them and into Maneki. “Get them out!” I called to Spring.

He nodded. “Everyone, please follow me to evacuate,” he announced, guiding the group towards one of the doors.

Maneki snarled and grabbed at my shield. It burned her hands, and she hissed and pulled them back. “I see how this is.” She pulled out the gun again, and aimed for my under protected head. I raised up my shield quickly, and charged her again.

I could hear Deep Fall and Spring both hacking away at the ReMares at the door. Maneki staggered back from my charge, and noticed. “I don’t think so, they’re mine!” She shouted, and more ReMares appeared at the door. “I will have them!”

“Dammit!” Deep Fall said, still slashing around. His mother was near the front of the pack, one of the first to trust Fall, who had been the only way she had seen her son for several years when he had forgotten his family. His father hung back, a stunned look on his face to see his son transformed.

“I don’t think so!” I said, shifting so that I stood between her and them.

She frowned and shot at me again, and then charged. She threw her whole weight against the shield, and I stumbled, tripping over a chair. I landed flat on my back. She kicked away my shield and put a heavy foot on my chest. It was painfully familiar, and I clawed at her leg, to get her off of my chest while I could still breathe. She looked down at me, with half lidded eyes and a wide smile. She raised her gun, and rested it against the center of my helmet. “Bye, little butterfly,” she said, and pulled the trigger.

I thought it would hurt. I really did. But instead everything went intensely bright white. I tried to shield my eyes from the light, and slowly my eyes adjusted.

I was laying down on the ground, in a plain white shift dress, in the middle of a bright white space. It didn’t even seem like a room. It just went on and on forever. I sat up slowly, looking around.

“Am I dead?” I asked the void.

It was not a chatty void. It didn’t see fit to answer me.

“What happened?” I asked again out loud. I couldn’t remember coming here. I couldn’t remember… anything? At once I recoiled from the notion and was comforted by it.

“I should remember something,” I told myself.

“Why? How do you know?” I asked.

“It… just seems like that should be the case,” I replied, although I felt like I was losing confidence in that argument.

“Maybe I’m not dead,” I said reasonably, “Maybe I’m not yet born?” I liked that idea. Dead people would have things they remembered, surely. They had lived whole lives. And I could not.

I stood up. “So… What do I do now?” I asked.

I still didn’t get an answer, so I supplied one myself. “I’ll walk.” I headed off in a random direction, because they were all the same. After a while, it started feeling like I wasn’t walking at all, but instead, I was floating gently in the void. “Oh, that’s right,” I said. “There’s no floor.” It was like that was the most reasonable thing in the world. Of course it was silly to walk. There was no floor, no up or down.

“But why do I know that?” I asked again, and still got no answer.

So I continued. It might have been for thirty seconds, or an eternity, but the white nothingness shifted, and faint colors appeared. Calculated lines of pink, purple and gold. A feral reflection of sky blue, yellow, and orange. A playful splatter of indigo, brown, and silver. A warm strong pool of red, green and bright blue.

They brightened as I floated by, going from soft pastels to strong vibrant colors. And I started to hear voices. “Hello!” I called.

“Meiki!” they called, softly, faintly. “Meiki, Meiki! Meiki!” Four voices over and over, babbling over each other. I couldn’t tell what they meant. For a moment, I enjoyed their sound, but it kept getting louder and louder.

I covered my ears, “Stop! Stop!” I demanded of the voices, but they only shouted louder, chanting the word over and over.

“MEIKI! MEIKI! MEIKI! MEIKI!” They called, all together now.

The colors solidified into four separate forms.

“Oh. I’m Meiki!” I said, coming to the sudden realization. And suddenly I knew who those four forms were, and I knew who I was, and I sat up abruptly in a conference room. Those four forms were standing in front of me, fierce and ready for battle.

Spring, fierce and ready for battle despite the consequences. Rou, my snappy brilliant friend who worked tirelessly to keep us all strong.

Summer, loud and feral, fighting along side the others despite himself. Nisei, my reluctant intern, a thieving ReMare who borrowed the body of a dead friend.

Fall, passionate and fierce, desperate to keep anyone else from facing the pain he had. Akito, my lighthearted friend who would do anything to take care of us all.

Winter, strong and steady, who thrived on justice. Meiko. My Meiko. Who loved me. Stern and shy. Meiko, who hated complicated games of betrayal. Who didn’t realize how brilliant she was. Who had a voice like an angel.

They were there, and they were there for me.

“Everyone…” I said softly.

 

 


	29. Bright

Everything was quiet.

“What did you do to her?” Winter's quiet voice broke the silence like the first foot step on snow.

“What did you do to my gun?” Maneki's voice was shaky. She held up her hands, which burned with shimmering light. The gun was gone.

“I'd answer the lady, Maneki,” Fall said, his voice playful, but with an edge like a razor.

Maneki stared at her hands, not sparing my guards any attention. “That shouldn't have happened. It should have just ripped the energy out of the... It should have been able to handle spirit energy weaker than me...”

“If you've killed her,” Spring began, and took a step forward threateningly. The others advance too, and I realized they hadn't heard me. I reached out to grab Spring's trailing ribbon and tugged. He turned and dropped to my side. “Meiki! Are you alright? Are you hurt?”

“I... no. I'm not hurt,” I shook my head, still feeling disoriented. Winter turned to face me, while Summer and Fall stepped forward to deter Maneki. She was still talking to herself, although I couldn't follow what she was saying. It sounded awfully technical. “What happened?” I stared at my own hands. I was Year, wasn't I? No. I had been Gift. But my armor was gone. The transformation didn't feel gone. I still felt like Year. “I was gone, I think... And then I saw you four...”

Winter and Spring looked at each other. Spring hung his head and shrugged. “She shot you with that gun, and it started dragging light out of you. You collapsed. We came to help, but then everything went bright and her gun exploded.”

Maneki's attention shot back to us. “It shouldn't have!” She was still holding her hands in front of her like they had been thrust into boiling water. They shimmered with incandescent light. “I had all of the calculations correct. I know exactly how strong you are. I knew exactly how much I needed to take to break your stupid belt. I'm not greedy. I have better things to do than devour an idiot.”

“Are you sure? Because that would definitely be in character for a ReMare. No offense, bro,” Fall said, glancing over at Summer, who growled lowly, but didn't seem bothered. Maneki, however, was. Not by the insult, but by his acknowledgment of Summer.

“AND YOU! I will not put up with this treachery.” Maneki snarled clenched her fists. She roared with pain, and ink shot up from underneath her in a pillar. It splashed off of the ceiling, splattering the ground around her. Fall and Summer took a step back.

I struggled to my feet. Spring made a motion for me to sit back down, but I shook my head. The pillar of ink subsided, revealing Tigra, but... Well. She was different from the last time we saw her. She was still sort of tiger shaped. She still had multicolored streaks of light breaking up the ink. But she was huge. And she dripped ink, like she had dragged herself out of a pit of tar.

“Niseimon! Was this his idea? Did that lying fox put you up to this?” Tigra growled, taking a heavy step towards Summer. He watched her warily. “I bet you've both been laughing this entire time, waiting for me to fail!”

“Are you getting paranoid, Tigra?” Ki asked, appearing in his human form, crouched on top of the podium, as if that was a normal place to sit. “You knew he felt conflicted about Fall. What did you expect?”

“You gave me bad information. You were supposed to gather data on them!” Tigra turned to advance on Ki.

He didn't budge. “And I did. All of the calculations I gave you were correct. I truly didn't expect it to back fire so spectacularly.” Ki glanced at me. I couldn't read his expression. “You're a fascinating creature, Kimura Mei.”

“I'm not a creature. I'm human,” I protested, and suddenly I was back in front of my apartment. My legs couldn't remember how to walk. Asuka reaching toward me to take my memories and my driver. A flash of light. Asuka's pain. I stood, and fought.

And then I was back in the board room again. I shook my head to clear my thoughts. Ki watched me with what looked like pity. “I am,” I repeated.

“Yes, you are,” he said softly. It was quiet for a long moment.

“Enough.” Winter's voice cut through the silence. “Meiki, can you take the others out of here? We'll take care of her.”

There were still civilians here. They were huddled in a corner, staring at us in fear and confusion, but the blots that had been hassling them had disappeared. I nodded. I could do that. I walked over to them, and helped an elderly woman stand up. “Come on, you need to get out of here,” I said gently.

Tigra turned her head towards Winter. “Is that what you think? Even if I am alone in this fight, even I'm surrounded by traitors and humans, I am more powerful than you can even imagine.”

“Yeah, I don't care,” Winter said, shifting her sword and charged her.

Tigra caught her sword, threw it aside, and then swept the legs out from under Winter. Deep Fall appeared in front of her and she shoved him back through his own portal. It glitched out and dropped him from the ceiling.

Summer roared and tackled her. She staggered back. Summer had a lot of extra colors now. But it wasn't enough. She tossed him aside.

Spring charged next, but Ki intercepted him. “I am no traitor, Tigra. I'll protect that trust.”

“Ki!” Spring shouted, and his voice shook with pain and fury. “ _Why_?”

Ki shook his head, and dropped his human form. “I want to live.” And he attacked. The two of them were a blur of pink and black.

The others were back on their feet now, and they glanced at each other briefly before rushing Tigra together. This time worked better. Summer got in a couple of good hits before Tigra crushed his helmet, and his entire form crumpled like shed skin. He reappeared behind her and attacked again. Deep Fall too, slashed at Tigra with his swords. It made contact, but the ink on her was so heavy, it quickly oozed back over any injuries. Winter went at her with fists, heavy thuds that made the high ReMare stagger.

Tigra didn't like this.

She roared, and a shock wave of ink blasted out of the ground, catching their feet, and making it difficult for them to move. She roared again and more blots appeared. And as they did, they took on animal characteristics. There was a blue and green parrot ReMare and a red and silver bee ReMare. They got to work pummeling Winter and Deep Fall, while Tigra went after Summer.

“They need your help,” Katsumi said quietly, standing next to me.

“I know. But... I don't think I can transform,” I said. It still felt like I was still Year. My belt was still activated, even if my armor was gone.

She held out a white marker that caught the light and shimmered. “That weird boy, the one with the pink hair... He said to give this to you.”

“Ki did?” I asked, incredulous. “And you just went along with it? Even though he looks like Rou?”

“Who?” she asked, and then shook her head, frustrated. “Listen, it doesn't matter. If you can help them... If you can help all of us, then you should do it.”

That struck me as odd, but she was right.

I took the marker. “Henshin,” I said, and I swiped it across the Time Driver. The Red Memoka was still jammed into the slot, but light shimmered across the driver, and it ejected the red one. I put it away and stuck the new Memoka into the slot instead..

My skin glittered with colorful light, and all of the colors of the Memokas swirled around me. Then the light settled, and I was in armor again. It was different from the Year armor. And different from Golden and Witch and all of the others, which despite having different strengths and colors, all looked similar to Year. The entire armor was colored like a shifting rainbow. It had a different chest plate, and three layers of skirt over the armor's pants. And instead of one cape, I had three, each gauzy and light, one red, one blue, and one yellow. As I moved, they created new colors as they covered and uncovered each other.

“Shine Bright!” The belt announced. “Go!”

And I went.

I felt like air, wild and fierce, free and flexible. I felt like earth, strong and steady, nurturing and kind. I felt like fire, blazing and dangerous, warm and playful. I felt like water, powerful and unrelenting, patient and calm.

I felt like light.

Brilliant and Bright.

And I felt like myself, in a way that I hadn't in a long time.

Where I stepped, the ink smeared on the ground dried and cracked.

Winter and Deep Fall ripped free of the crusted ink, and quickly turned the tides against the bee and parrot ReMares. Ki paused to stare at me, and I could have sworn I saw a quick flash of a grin cross his face before Spring decked him, pink wrist blade slashing Ki's face.

As I approached Tigra, without seeing me, Summer shuddered at my approach, and scrambled out of the way, as if he had been standing on train tracks and felt a distant rumble approaching.

Tigra took a step back. “What is this?”

“Tigra, it's time. You've played your games long enough,” I said, gently.

“Don't think some new transformation will help you,” she said, a new gun forming in her hand. “I'm still stronger than you!”

I slipped into another memory. Not my own this time, but not unfamiliar. I was in the Under with Rou and Maneki. They were talking about a ReMare that had been defeated, and had been put into a sigil. Rou and Ki had taken that information and used it to create Memokas and origami bots. And then I was back in the conference room, staring down the High ReMare.

“You don't have to be afraid. You made sure, didn't you? That if you were ever defeated, we could give you a new body,” I said. I didn't think she intended to join us. She wasn't playing a long con, where she was trying to dismantle the Under from the inside, like I was fairly certain Ki was doing. But, she did have one thing in common with the fox. She was smart. She was smart enough that if she thought there was the barest chance that she might lose, she'd make sure she was safe. And joining us would be safer than starting out as a weak new ReMare, especially after all of the games she played with the other ReMares to get herself to the top to begin with.

Out of the corner of my eye, Ki rubbed the fresh scar of pink light, and lashed out against Spring, shoving him back. Spring staggered back and crashed into Deep Fall, who caught him. Ki disappeared. Summer dashed to protect Deep Fall from an opportunistic blot. He brushed against me, and staggered instead, howling and clutching where his arm had touched me. Ki reappeared and grabbed Summer by the scarf and dragged him into the Under.

“Hey! Get back here!” Spring shouted and lunged after them, but Deep Fall grabbed him around the armpits and didn't let him go until they were already gone.

“That's why you told Rou and Ki about how to contain spirits safely, isn't it?” I asked.

“I did no such thing!” she objected. “You don't know me. I wanted to see what he would do so I could make a better weapon. You don't know anything, girl. I will take your light, and I will destroy you.” She raised her old gun and shot at me. I hopped out of the way easily. She growled in frustration and threw the gun down. It splattered into ink on the floor. She roared and charged towards me.

Winter tackled her, and Tigra stumbled to one knee. “Get out of the way,” Tigra snarled, and shoved back. Before Winter could go flying back, Tigra caught her by the front of her poncho. Winter swayed at the whiplash. Tigra stood up slowly, lifting Winter off her feet. Winter held onto Tigra's arms, glaring at her. “You call yourself Winter, but that is my strength. You are a breeze compared to a blizzard. This isn't a game you can win.”

“Maybe. But she can,” Winter said, a smile in her voice.

I was already moving. I drew the new Memoka, and like the Year Memoka, it became a sword, although this one had a thicker blade of light than the Prism Blade. It shimmered and shifted through all of the colors, constantly changing. “Prism Blade Complete! Go!” The belt announced.

Tigra noticed my approach and threw Winter aside. Deep Fall swore, and warped over to catch her. Or rather, break her fall. Winter knocked him over and they landed in a tangled heap on the ground.

I attacked Tigra, slashing her across the chest. The ink hardened and started cracking, and her colors flared. She knocked aside my hand and kicked me solidly in the chest. I fell back, and as I regathered my composure, she roared and ink rushed up from the ground again in a messy pillar. She came out of it hulking and taller and glistening with wet ink.

The room was almost too small for her now. She grabbed my arm and threw me against the windows. It shattered and did nothing to break my movement. My colorful capes fluttered in the wind and my belt announced, “Prism wings. Go!” My fall slowed as glowing butterfly wings appeared from my back. I landed safely on the ground, and the wings disappeared.

Seconds later, the rest of the windows exploded outwards as Tigra barreled through them. She landed on the pavement with a shattering boom, debris and dust exploding out,and then ink splattered up and stuck them to her form, that was crouched in a crater of asphalt and dirt. She stood up slowly, and she loomed. She had to be at least five times my height now. She was encrusted with asphalt and glass, and she was angry.

I grinned into my mask. She was strong, but I was too. And now it was just the two of us.

“Little butterfly, how do you like my new armor? You're not the only one who can pull an upgrade out of nothing.” she laughed, and lifted her foot above my head. I rolled out of the way just in time. As her foot hit the ground, I could feel the shock waves in my bones, but I barely had time to register that before the foot swept to the side, flinging me back. My wings reappeared, but they couldn't slow me down enough to keep from crashing into a bike rack. I sent the whole row crashing down.

I staggered back to my feet, and grabbed one of the bikes. It took a sharp yank to untangle it from the others. I put my Pair Device on the handlebars and light surrounded the bike, and it became the Synchrocycle. I climbed aboard and revved, driving close enough to slice at her foot with the Prism Blade. She lifted the foot in pain, and then dropped down to all fours. She slammed a massive hand down at me. I barely got out of the way, ramping over a piece of asphalt. In the air, I slashed at her face, and she reared back, the ink drying and crumbling around the wound.

I landed the Synchrocycle, and it skidded a few feet to the side. I couldn't stop long, Tigra attacked again, and it was all I could do to weave in and out of her claws to avoid getting hit.

“Bright!” I heard Winter shouting from the entrance of the building, breathing hard. Fall stood behind her, giving Rou a piggyback ride. He must not have been able to stay transformed any longer and had passed out. “Are you alright?!”

I stopped for a second to give her a peace sign with my free hand. Tigra used the opportunity to grab my bike. My heart dropped at unexpectedly leaving the ground. I was fairly certain her next step would be to chuck me and the bike away, and I wasn't about to let that happen. I squirmed my way out of her grasp, climbing up her arm. The ink hardened and crackled under my feet. I glanced back down at them as I climbed.

“I think she's fine,” Fall said, dryly.

“That's not fine!” Winter punched him in the arm.

“Ow!”

I reached Tigra's shoulder and sunk the Prism Blade into the joint, and she yowled and flung her arm to the side. My blade caught in her ink for a moment, before breaking free and flinging me out into the air. My Prism Wings activated again, and I managed to land neatly in front of the others.

“Of course you can fly now. Next you'll tell me you breathe fire too,” Fall complained, both impressed and envious.

“It's not on purpose.” The wings had already disappeared. As far as I could tell, they were acting like an emergency parachute, although they had a little more finesse than that. “You guys wanna help me take her down?” I tilted my head towards the tiger. I was grinning into my helmet, the power of Bright intoxicating. I could do anything.

“Do I ever,” Winter said, her massive sword appearing in her hand.

“Then let's go!” I whooped, and threw myself back into the fray. Winter followed more slowly.

Fall took a few steps forward before remembering that he still had Rou on his back. “Dammit, don't go running off looking cool without me!” Fall stooped to put Rou down gently on the front step. “I'll be right back, Jiro-kun, don't worry,” he said, gently ruffling his hair before shouting “Abracadabra!” and opening a rift. He reappeared ahead of me, and turned to shout “Ha!” at us, before turning towards Tigra, glaive in hand, using the turning motion to throw the glaive at her. It embedded into her wounded shoulder. She shook her head irritably, and plucked the glaive out like a thorn.

“I'll tell you the same thing, boy. You're not in my league either. You're not even Deep Fall anymore!” Tigra said, and crushed the glaive in one hand. It broke like a toothpick. She dropped the pieces to the ground in front of Fall.

Fall stared at the broken weapon for a second. He shook his head, and summoned his second glaive. “Don't worry, I've got another.” He lobbed that one at her too. She batted it aside, and it clattered to the ground across the parking lot. She wiggled back and then pounced at Fall. I shoved him out of the way, and her hands closed over me instead, blocking out the sun.

But I was Bright.

As she touched my armor, it burned her hands, and chunks of dried ink fell to the ground. She yowled and she pulled her hands back, sitting on her haunches to inspect them. The ink fell away, revealing the incandescent scars from when her gun exploded. The back of her hands had small mint green scars, where Winter had struck her. Some of the ink over her body shifted, to recover her injuries. It made her smaller. At this point she was a little over 3 times my height. She still towered.

Winter helped me back to my feet. “I don't like this.”

“What? What's wrong?” It felt like the battle was going well to me. I still had energy to spare, and Tigra was having a hard time even touching me.

“I don't think we can help you much,” she said, tightening her grip on the hilt of her sword.

“Speak for yourself,” Fall muttered, and stamped his driver again. His transformation chimed, and his armor changed to Deep Fall again. “If glaives don't work, then I'll use my swords.” He raised up the dark indigo blade, pointing it at Tigra. “You used my brother, you hurt my boyfriend, and you shot my fiancee. I won't stop until I've beaten you!”

“What?” I asked, genuinely confused.

“He means you,” Winter muttered. “He's being dumb.”

“I sure am,” Deep Fall agreed, and charged at Tigra.

Tigra swiped at him, and he used his magic to disappear and reappear where it was harder to hit him.

Winter stared after him for a moment, and then grumbled more under her breath about idiots. She stomped her foot. “Fine! I'm tired of this too! She has messed with the Mei Brigade enough!” And Winter charged in, hacking at Tigra's legs. The two of them synced up, so that when Tigra tried to go after one, the other attacked, diverting her attention.

Which gave me a chance. I put the Prism Blade back into the slot in the driver, and the belt chimed. I jumped up into the air, Prism Wings reappearing at my back. “COLOR WHEEL!” It announced, and my wings flapped twice before dissolving into a rainbow of light. Multi colored rings of lights lined up in front of me, directing me at Tigra. I dove foot first at the massive tiger ReMare, flying through all of the rings, and crashing into her with an explosion of light.

And I fell into memories that I didn't recognize.

A cat, twisting it's way through a display of old Japanese dolls. A elderly woman complaining about the cold as she sewed tiny kimonos. A shogi board in disarray after an argument. Laughter over another game of shogi. A boy and a girl playing swords with some sticks in a garden. A scolding over muddy socks. A cat chasing a blue light. The blue light becoming a cat, and bopping the real cat on the nose.

The blue cat sitting on the gate, watching as crowds of people bought the old woman's dolls, as people made the quiet gardens a picnic destination to observe the old woman's decorations. The girl and the boy saying good bye as they headed off to a fancy high school.

Ink everywhere. The blue cat sick and weak. The real cat offering the blue cat mice that she hunted, but the blue cat couldn't eat. The garden withered. The shop closed. A pink fox urged her to move, to find new humans. But this was home. She refused, taunting him for running away.

Then, there was a white glow. A massive white snake coiled it's way through the the ink slicked garden. “We have a cure,” he said in a soft, excited voice.

And then I was back in the disaster of a parking lot.

Maneki was still there, small again. She couldn't have been much bigger than Akito. She crouched on the ground, her body shuddering. Small sparks of color drifted through the air, and everything they touched seem to become brighter, and more vibrant and alive. Maneki only had blue stripes. Not light blue like Sharky, but rich ultramarine, like the cat from the memory.

“You've ruined everything,” she said softly.

“The blots weren't good for you, Maneki.”

“They were fine. We are stronger now. We're not tossed around by the whims of humans anymore. We're real,” Maneki spat the last words. “You're the only one who has a problem with it.”

“No. Not the only one, Maneki,” Ki appeared, on top of a car. “You should have listened.” And slowly, he deliberately walked down the hood of the car, stepping lightly to the ground. “But there's nothing else you can do now, is there? He won't have a use for you now. All you had going for you was strength and wits, and you've been outmatched.”

“Do you think I don't know that?” she snapped at him, tears in her voice. “Fine! Do it!” She raised up her head, exposing her neck. “Stop your gloating and just stuff me into a stupid ball of paper already!”

“No, I think not. I'm here for another reason. Mei. I believe your time is about up. Fall, Winter. Take them home,” Ki said, gesturing at me and over at Rou. “Nisei, I believe you wanted this one?”

He had been leaning against a tree. He stood up straight and stamped his belt a second time. “Midsummer BLAZING GLORY!” And a sigil appeared over his head and dropped down over him. His armor changed slightly adding flames around the feet and hands, but it still was a hodgepodge of all of the colors he had stolen from me. He walked towards Maneki.

“You? After all I've done for you? I gave you power you never even dreamed of!” Maneki was offended enough to stand up and face him head on. It wasn't enough. He jumped up to do his finishing move.

“Fugitive Color!” His belt roared.

Ki's words confused me. “Out of time? I can still fight! What are you talking abou-” Oh.

Oh.

“End of Time,” the belt announced, the words lowering in pitch like a CD player with dying batteries. The light glitched out on my armor, and for a second I was Year, and then my armor was gone. And I hit the ground like a bag of bricks.

Things were hazy after that. I heard Meiko and Akito shouting at each other, but I couldn't make out the words. I heard the roar of a motorcycle. Then I slipped into white space, before jolting into a rush of confusing memories. Ordinary memories, of families eating together, of children riding bikes to school, coworkers singing together at a karaoke booth. Farmers. People in traditional clothing. Nothing seemed familiar to me.

And then I was on the couch in the lab, light streaming through the window onto my face.

I felt like I had been trampled by elephants.

I must have said it aloud, because Akito laughed. “More like a tiger. You're finally awake?”

“I think so?” I sat up slowly. Everything hurt. “I don't know if I ought to be.”

“Sounds awake to me,” Rou said roughly. His skin looked distressingly gray, but he gave me a weak smile. “She's not talking about paying bills or whatever.”

“I was talking in my sleep?” I asked, and then decided it wasn't important. “Is Meiko here?”

Akito glanced at Rou and looked a little sheepish. “Jiro?”

“She's at work. You've been out for almost a week. She's... not been very happy about it,” Rou said carefully.

“She threw something at my head,” Akito said helpfully.

“What?” I asked.

“A book, actually,” Akito said.

“No, I mean... What?” I stressed the last word more this time. “Why is she angry?”

“You've been unconscious for a week. And... She found out about the whole not sleeping thing,” Rou said at length.

“Oh,” I said.

“I know you meant to tell her, but with you out like a light, it kind of slipped our minds. So when she found out, she blamed us for keeping information from her,” Akito explained. “So we're basically grounded.”

“Oh.” I said again, not sure how else to respond. I really had intended to tell her soon. “What... happened? I remember that we went to some fancy thing...”

Rou's head went up and his eyes were wide, “You don't remember fighting Maneki? Or becoming Bright?”

Now that he mentioned it, I did. But it felt as unreal as the memories that had drifted through my head while I had been passed out. “Sort of. Did we defeat her?”

“Mm, you knocked her back from to one color, and Summer did the rest. And then you passed out, and Ki ran off again,” Akito explained. “With Maneki's spirit, so I'm not sure what we're going to do about that...”

“If he hadn't have slowed me down, we could have finished that fight a lot faster,” Rou muttered.

“He was protecting you,” I said, trying to puzzle together the fuzzy memories. “He said it even. He said he wasn't a traitor, and that he'd protect that trust.”

“He said that to that damn cat!” Rou snapped.

I shook my head. “He gave your mom a Memoka for me.” I patted my shirt pockets and couldn't find any of my Memokas. “Where is it?”

“My what?” Rou said, frowning at me. “I don't actually know my...” I could see the wheels turning in his head, and he swore when he realized what the conflicting story meant. “Is that what Ki was on about? Saying it was a favor? Damn fox!” Rou shouted, standing up and pacing.

“That was him? I thought that was some magical Bright Lady nonsense. Like Deep Fall,” Akito said, watching Rou with his brow furrowed.

“No, it was a second Memoka. Where is all of my stuff?” I asked.

Rou stopped for a second, and gestured at the table. My Time Driver was sitting on the data pad hooked up to his computer. The Memokas were lined up next to it. “Here. I was trying to figure out what happened with Bright. I can't. Nothing seems different.”

I stood up slowly and walked over to my things, counting the Memokas. Bright wasn't there.

Akito followed me over, arm held out as if he was worried I'd fall. “When you dropped the Bright transformation... It was weird. It was like it static or a graphic glitch, and then you were Year... It... looked like it hurt.”

“I... Yeah, probably. After she shot me... It felt like I was still Year.” I said slowly.

“Your armor was gone though,” Akito pointed out. “And you weren't even Year when she shot you. You were New.”

“I know, but that's how I felt,” I said. “Sen? Do you know anything about Bright?”

The silver origami crane shifted on the table. “About the Bright Lady?”

“No, it was a Memoka,” I said, shaking my head.

“I do not know. But from their descriptions of the fight, it sounds like it was the Bright Lady's energy. Less... Filtered than Year, perhaps. I am surprised that Ki had it. Or that he gave it to you now.”

“What do you mean?” Akito asked.

“Well, it's a lot of energy for a human,” Sen explained, and I slumped. I didn't want to talk about what a human should and should not be able to do.“It shouldn't have worked unless you had used all of the other colored Memokas. They are meant to unlock her power. The only thing I can guess is that shooting the Time Driver released a lot of untapped energy, which made it temporarily safe use...”

“Not exactly safe, she was unconscious for a week,” Akito said, crossing his arms.

“Well, she's not dead,” Sen said. “Although it was still very risky. I wouldn't have done it.”

“Why didn't you tell me about the Memokas before?” I demanded.

“It wasn't important. And I thought you would know,” Sen said, disinterested.

“I asked you about them! I asked you if they were turning me into a spirit!”

“And I gave you my answer. You didn't ask what they were for,” Sen said. I clenched my fists and turned away, wanting to kick something.

“I' m not sure what his game is anymore. Ki was talking to Tigra then.” Rou had circled back to Ki's claims that he wasn't a traitor. “He even said her name. He was proving he wasn't betraying her,” Rou said, half talking to himself.

“Jiro-kun, buddy, friend. You are barely better off than Meiki after that fight, and you tapped out early. I'd hate to see what you'd look like after jumbo tiger got her claws on you,” Akito said, throwing an arm over Rou's shoulder and earning a fierce glare. “Besides, he warned us she was going to pass out, and he didn't even try and steal your unconscious body. Which, thinking back on, we really should have had someone guarding you... Sorry.”

“Hm.” Rou looked to the window.

I sat back down on the couch, swiping my cell phone off of the coffee table. “I don't really understand, but I do think he's on our side. As long as we're not going against his plans, I think he'll come back to us eventually.”

“Yeah! Nothing to worry about. Even Nisei helped us out this time. I don't think he had anything to gain from protecting Meiki-chan from Maneki. At least before, Minotaur and Maneki were having some weird rivalry game going on,” Akito said, “He's really changing.”

“And you think Ki and Maneki didn't have a weird competition going on? He's been playing her games for ages. All Nisei's done in the Under is change masters. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Ki ends up being named a high ReMare after this stunt,” Rou said, pacing again.

“You know him best,” I said distractedly as I sent a text message to Meiko.

“I won't deny that he's helping us, but... I am worried about him. And you. I didn't know he gave that Memoka to you. And it really... I didn't know what was happening...”

“He was scaaaared. It's like he cares about you or something,” Akito said, teasingly, although I knew he had been just as worried.

Rou ignored him. “Blots corrupt spirits. It's what they do,” Rou said. He stopped and sighed. “We just have to keep pushing forward anyway.”

 


	30. Talk

Meiko didn't text me back, so I took the Synchrocycle to the office building that housed the radio station. Akito tried to argue with me, saying I should rest, but I had enough rest. He did make me borrow a heavy leather jacket from Rou, because it was getting cold. I loved it. It smelled like his hair gel.

I stood outside, leaning against the wall, waiting for Meiko to be done. I could see my breath, and there were flurries of snow in the air. Winter in Oara was fairly mild, and the snow likely wouldn't stick, but it still was cold.

When she came out, I watched her for a moment. She looked tired and distant. She walked past me and then stopped. “Meiko-chan?” I called. “I came to take you home, if you want.”

I thought she might say no for a moment. Then she nodded her head yes.

“Sorry you ended up working alone again. I wish I could have been there,” I said as we walked over to where I had parked, glad she had agreed to come along.

“Uh huh,” Meiko said noncommittally, climbing on behind me, and wrapping her arms around my waist.

“Hold on tight,” I said . She squeezed me and rested her head against my back.

Back at our apartment building, she followed me up the stairs. “Want to come in?” I asked, and she nodded. I was starting to worry at her quietness. Was she really that angry at me? She could be very quiet, but if she was truly angry, she usually was better at communicating it.

“Let me do your hair,” Meiko said, taking my hand and leading me into my bedroom. I sat down on the floor in front of my bed and she sat behind me. She undid the old braid and brushed out my hair. “How are you feeling?”

“I'm good,” I said, half out of reflex, and half because hair brushing really relaxes me.

Meiko was quiet as she brushed my hair.

“Are you...” I hesitated, “Are you angry with me?”

She stopped brushing for a moment, and then restarted. “Are you really good? You just woke up from being passed out for a week.”

“I'm here with you, and you're brushing my hair,” I said hesitantly. It was more complicated than that, but it wasn't like I was lying.

“I have been worried sick about you all week, and then I find out you weren't sleeping at all, and you didn't tell me?” Meiko's voice rose towards the end.

“I'm sorry,” I said.

“And instead you told Rou and Akito, and fine, I get it. They deserve your trust too. But you... You always told me stuff that was bothering you. Even when I didn't remember being your friend, you told me about Year! Why are you leaving me out of the loop?” She had stopped brushing, and I turned to look at her, and she had tears in her eyes. “I knew you weren't eating, but you kept being dodgy about that too... Do you not trust me?”

“Meiko!” I got up and sat next to her, pulling her into my arms. “Hey, listen, I really am sorry. I was going to tell you. I only told Akito yester... I mean... the day before fighting Tigra. And I didn't think I'd spend the next week knocked out.” I rubbed her back. “And... to be honest... I'm scared. I didn't even want to tell him. I kept hoping it wasn't real.”

“Why did you?” She asked, sniffling into my shoulder.

“Cause he's a doctor,” I said, which was partially the reason, “And... He's also an idiot. I guess I was half hoping he'd fix me, and knowing he couldn't, I was hoping he'd help blow it off. Like it wasn't a big deal. But he tattled on me, so I guess it's more serious than I thought.”

“It is serious,” she objected. “You shouldn't have to struggle alone.”

“I know.” I sighed. “I'm sorry. I didn't want to worry you.”

She was quiet for a long moment, and then she pulled away to look at me. “I worry that I won't be able to help you soon. Bright was so much stronger than us, and it was all we could do to even distract Tigra. At least... let me help carry your worries.”

“Alright,” I said at length, “Although I don't know if I'll be able to use Bright again. I don't have it. And Sen said I shouldn't have been able use it without all of the Memokas.”

“Then how?”

I explained what we had talked about at the lab, and how Ki had given me Bright and how it was gone now. How I had still felt like Year without my armor after Maneki had shot me. When I was finished, she was quiet, looking thoughtful. I hesitated. “Do you still like me?”

“What kind of question is that?” she asked, raising an eyebrow and shoving my shoulder lightly.

“I'm serious.. I don't know what's happening to me. I don't know if I'm even still human.” I gripped the fabric of my blanket, and glanced away from her.

She took my face gently in her hands, and had me look at her. “Do you care about humans?”

“Yes?” I said, surprised by the question.

“Do you want to challenge yourself to solve problems?”

“Yeah, I guess,” I said, more confused.

“You get bored if you can't, right?”

“Slander,” I said. The joke came out very weakly, but it made her smile and squish my cheeks a little.

“It's not slander if it's true. Next question. Do you want to grow and change, and figure out who you are?””

“... Right now I feel like things are changing too fast,” I said reluctantly.

“That is normal,” she said, “But we've seen the alternative, right? We did the introduction for Puffy-kun five times.”

“Ugh,” I groaned. “Right. That's no good either.”

“I didn't think so. Do you want to help humans?”

“Of course!” But that made me hesitate again, “But, I want to help the spirits too.”

She nodded. “So do I.” She leaned forward and kissed my forehead. “You are human.”

“But-”

“Human,” Meiko interrupted. “And a good one. And even if you weren't... What is it that Aki Aki likes to say? I am very gay for justice, or something.”

I couldn't help but dissolve into giggles. The way that she said it was just so prim and proper, especially compared to Akito. “That's...” I gathered myself, “That's not quite right,”I corrected her. “Hella gay.”

“Yes, exactly. You're a good person, you goof. You are brave, and kind, and strong. And I love you,” Meiko said.

I grinned, and I could feel my face burn. She let go of my face and I gave her a quick kiss. “I love you too, Meiko.”

“Now, let me finish doing your hair.”

I sat back down on the floor and luxuriated in her braiding.

“Are you still mad at Akito and Rou?” I asked, eyes half lidded.

She sighed. “I suppose it wasn't really their fault if they only knew about it for a day,” Meiko said reluctantly.

“Akito said you threw a book at him,” I said helpfully.

“Aki Aki and I argued, yes,” she said, sounding halfway amused and halfway annoyed. “Rou was pretty out of it for a day or two, and we were both stressed out. And... well... I didn't really throw it at him. I slammed it on the table near him.”

“Careful, he'll actually get scared of you,” I said, teasing a little. The cheerful way he had said she had thrown a book at him made me doubt it.

“I'll apologize,” she said, amused.

“He probably deserved it. I know he likes to press buttons when he's in a mood,” I said.

“Nevertheless, I don't mind being the bigger person,” Meiko said, and ended my braid with a purple hairband. “Since he was showing off during the fight.”

I tried to remember what she was talking about. It was hard, because the fight was still a little hazy. Not missing or forgotten, but... Almost like the memories were also too bright to look at closely. I remembered vaguely that he had thrown his glaives at Tigra and had them solidly brushed off. And... Oh. I suppose he had said he wouldn't stop fighting in order to protect his loved ones. Which had gotten on Meiko's nerves.“What, that whole speech about protecting his boyfriend and fiancee? Did that actually bother you?”

“No, not really. I know where the two of you stand.” She leaned down to wrap her arms around my neck and rest her chin on my head. “And you know where I stand.”

“You haven't changed your mind?”

“No. He's an idiot, but he's our idiot,” she said softly. “And I know I've been on edge lately. I really don't like all of this traitor double crossing nonsense. I had hoped it was finished when Akito came back to us.”

“Me too,” I said, “But if they can help us from that side, then we probably can use the help.”

“I guess.”

“You're an honest person. I like that about you,” I said, tilting my head up to try and peek at her. It didn't really work.

She kissed the top of my head. “Thank you.” We were quiet for a little while, and at length she said, “Let's have a Christmas party.”

“What? Really?” I asked, getting up to turn and look at her.

“Are you surprised?” She laughed, and my heart leaped, “I am Winter, am I not? Besides, it's a good way to make nice with Akito, don't you think? He'd like an excuse for an event. We could borrow a karaoke machine or something.”

“I can't say that I'm not!” I stood up and couldn't help but pace around the room a little. “You're not usually the one to suggest stuff like this.”

“Doesn't mean I can't,” Meiko said.

The next day, I went back to work with her. I called out "Good morning!" cheerfully as I came in, and got awkward hellos from Okuda-san and Nawata-san. "Sorry for being absent again. I brought baked goods!" I said, hefting a box that I had pestered Akito for early in the morning. "They're not really enough, but I'm really thankful for all of you covering for me when I have problems being Year." I handed the box over to Okuda-san, and bowed sharply.

"Oh! Oh, don't worry about it," Okuda-san said, flustered, and peeked at the contents. "These look delicious."

"They're from Momiji Cafe. The owner is a friend of ours," Meiko said blithely as she put her navy blue pea coat away in her locker.

"Oh, I've been there," Nawata-san chimed in, her voice appreciative.

"Now, um, before you girls get started, I do want to talk to Meiki," Okuda-san started.

"Of course!" I said. "What's up?"

"In my office, please," she said, and left.

"Am I in trouble?" I whispered to Meiko. She shrugged.

"She hasn't said anything to me, but you have been out a lot lately," she said.

"Gee, thanks," I said, and straightened my shoulders.

"My pleasure. Good luck charming your way out of it," she murmured, and nudged my shoulder.

"Right," I took a deep breath and followed her into the office. "Excuse my intrusion," I said politely as I entered the office. The last time I had been asked into her office, I had been conned into supporting a ridiculous stunt involving Nisei pretending to be Year in a really bad costume, so it was really hard to know what to expect. "How can I help you, boss?"

"I'm glad you're back, Meiki, I've got an important case I want you to investigate, and I'm pretty sure it's related to Year anyway. You were involved in the "gas explosion" that happened at the Spark Building?"

The name didn't make sense to me and I frowned. "Spark Building?”

“It's mostly fancy conference halls, down by the station,” she explained.

“Oh, um, I guess so. Meiaki-sensei invited us to a special dinner at his mother's request. I think it had something to do with the progress on the Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital," I said. "Although things didn't really get that far, I suppose. What do you need?"

"Well, it's come to my attention that some very important people were involved, and you might want to do something to make it up to them," Okuda-san said firmly. Despite her words, it didn't sound like a suggestion. It was hard to think of who she could be talking about though. I barely remembered that there had been other people there, aside from Rou's mother. And I guess Akito's mother had been there, although I didn't remember talking to her. And while they were important, they had put up with our shenanigans in the past, so I doubt they were complaining too much.

"So... do you want me to do an interview or something? I mean, I'm happy to do something for the guests, because I do want to protect them, but I'm not entirely sure what you mean. Is this a radio responsibility or personal advice?" I asked, and maybe that was way too forward, because she frowned a little.

"It's both. Senator Meiaki is demanding to know more about the situation. And since this radio station is the only place reporting anything to do with the ReMares on a regular basis, he came to us," she said, brushing hair away from her face. She seemed a little frazzled. We had certainly done interviews with incredibly important people in the past, but they tended to be celebrities and not politicians.

"And you didn't ask Meiko?" I asked, curious. "She's the one with political experience."

"She's not Year. I know she's your best friend or whatever you two are, but he specifically asked for our person in charge of our Year correspondence, and as Year, that would be you." She paused and frowned at me, "I understand you are busy, and that you are protecting Oara and all that, but your attendance has been spotty this year. It seems fair that you take care of this problem."

"Yes, boss, of course," I said, bowing slightly. "I'd be happy to."

"I'll set up a meeting for you. Be ready," Okuda-san said, dismissing me fro m the office. I bowed my way out and went to Meiko.

"So, are you in the doghouse?" Meiko asked, side eyeing me.

"A little. I guess I have to go talk to Akito's dad," I said, slumping into my chair. "He's in a fuss about the dinner we sort of uh... you know." I made an explosion with my hands.

"I think that's probably understandable," she said with a wry smile, "I'm surprised she didn't ask me, since it's been a whole week. Surely somebody like that doesn't want to be kept waiting."

"It's clearly my punishment for being unconscious," I grumbled.

"Ah. I'm sorry, Meiki," she said, frowning. "I'll do what I can to help, of course."

"Thanks."

We got through the morning news and chatter without incident. During lunch break, we stopped into the break room so that Meiko could grab a green tea cake from the selection of goodies I had brought.

"You do know we're probably going to Akito's, right?" I asked as she ate it.

"And give him the satisfaction of asking him for something he made, when I have free ones right here? I'll pass.” She shook her head. “There's a difference between apologizing and feeding his ego."

"You're going to Momiji Cafe?" asked a stiff voice from the entrance of the break room. Nisei stood there, as bit like a deer startled by headlights.

"Um, yeah. What can we do for you?" I asked.

"No. Nothing. I just..." he stood there for a long moment. I started fidgeting with the end of my braid. The awkwardness rolling off him was making me nervous.

Meiko looked at him, and then at the box of snacks I had brought, and then back at him. She rolled her eyes. "Oh, jeeze. Eat a bun," Meiko said, aggravated. She shoved the box of baked goods at him.

He blinked at her, wide eyed and unsure what to make of that. He crept forward and grabbed one, before taking a few quick steps back again. "Thank you very much," he said, remembering his manners. And then he disappeared down the hall.

"What was that about?" I said, staring after him. “It's not really like him to be that shy.”

She frowned. “I don't know. Maybe he doesn't want to admit that he likes eating now.”

“Oh,” I said. She glanced at me, and patted my shoulder. I shook my head. “It's fine, I'm fine”

“Meiki.”

“What? Do you want me to complain? I hate it! I really do. But I can't do anything about it right now, and if I made a fuss over anyone eating and enjoying it, I'd be doing it nonstop.” I stood up and walked to the door, and then back to her, indecisive. “It's too much, okay? That's why I try and ignore it. If anything changes, or it's especially hard, I will let you know, but I can't let it overwhelm me right now.”

She was quiet for a long moment. "Alright. I understand. I'm sorry."

I felt a little bad for blowing up at her. "Me too. I know you're worried."

"I am, but you're right."

"I suppose," I said. Nothing felt right, but I couldn't do anything about that. "Are you ready to go?"

"No, I've got to do something really fast. You can wait for me at the Synchrocycle, if you want," Meiko said, and disappeared into the offices. I stood there for a moment before shaking my head. I started for the door.

“Wait, Meiki-san.” Okuda-san stopped me for a moment to hand me a folder. "For the Meiaki interview. Tonight."

"Tonight?" I said, feeling like a pit had opened under me.

"Tonight," she repeated firmly.

"Alright." I sighed, and headed out to the bike, where I stood for a few minutes looking over the folder. It looked like I was going to Etoile for dinner, with a generous company account. I was not thrilled. Etoile was great but I really didn't want to do a dinner interview. I shoved the folder into the storage of my bike and Meiko joined me.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Just had something to say to Nisei. Let's go." I was curious, but her tone suggested she wasn't going to explain.

"Welcome ladies!" Akito said cheerfully as we entered the cafe. It was bustling with his lunch crowd. And while he hadn't gone quite as all out with decorations as he had with Halloween, he had put up a small Christmas tree, covered with rainbow lights and plain white bobbles on it. The effect was pretty, with the lights softly reflecting off of the bobbles. "Not here to read, are you?" he asked Meiko, exaggeratedly looking out for a book.

"No. I was going to ask you to host a Christmas party," Meiko said. A grin stretched across Akito's face. Meiko's eyes widened slightly in alarm. "A small one," she warned him. "I'm in charge of invitations, got it?"

"Sure, sure. Sounds fun. I'm in." Akito gave her a thumbs up.

"She's going to borrow a karaoke machine," I offered helpfully.

"Ooh, yes, excellent. Actually... It wouldn't be a terrible idea to buy one. I do like having parties here..." Akito said, trailing off. "Oh! Rou wanted your help with something too, Meiko. Something about the data the Time Driver gave him."

"Okay. I'll be back," Meiko said. I nodded and she hurried upstairs.

"Oh, this is exciting. It'll be our first Christmas together," he said, his hands clutched over his heart, as he half skipped to the back of the restaurant, "Or at least, you know, that we can remember."

"It is," I agreed as I followed him.

He stopped abruptly. "What's up? You sound bummed. Did she throw a book at you too?"

"No, of course not," I shook my head, "Or at least, we worked that out, I think. No, I have an interview with one Senator Meiaki this evening."

"Ugh, my condolences," Akito said, and turned away to pull something out of the oven. The smell of freshly baked bread filled the kitchen. I wished I was hungry.

"Has he contacted you?" I asked.

"I wouldn't know," Akito said, blithely. "I ignore his calls. What does he want with you?"

"I am the radio station's official Year correspondent, apparently," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Not Meiko, huh? She's usually the one reporting it," Akito said lightly.

"I'm being punished," I said.

"A fate worse than death, I'm sure. Good luck. Want me to show up and cause a scene? I can, if you want."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea."

"Oh, it definitely isn't." Akito said agreeably.

"Do you have any advice?" I asked.

"Well, I've mostly tried running away and avoiding him, but I doubt your boss would be terribly happy about either of those options," Akito said.

"No, probably not." I sighed. "I probably should go home and get out the fancy suit, shouldn't I?"

"Yeah, he'll expect that," Akito muttered.

"Can you tell Meiko where I went?"

"Sure.”

I went home and got dressed in my best suit. It was black, and had a pencil skirt. I wore a blue vest under the jacket, and a sea green tie. Later, after taking Meiko back to work and finishing some office stuff, I headed out to Etoile for my fancy dinner that I couldn't eat. The waiter sat me down in a private room with a single table. It was covered with a white table cloth. Several large paintings covering the walls. Okuda-san had arraigned for a set course, so I didn't have to order anything. I waited for a few minutes before an older man that I recognized vaguely from the fight a week ago. A younger girl with horn rimmed glasses and her hair done in an elegant bun followed behind quietly. I stood up. "Good evening, sir." I bowed a respectable amount. He tilted his head slightly at me, and I handed him my business card, bowing again. He gave me his in return and I thanked him. I also gave the girl a slight bow, which she returned without introducing herself. I took it that she might be an assistant of some sort.

"So, you're the girl they've got covering this monster nonsense, are you?" he asked, without any further preamble.

"Yes, sir. What would you like to know?" I asked.

"You know my..." he frowned slightly, as if he had to choke out the words, "son, correct?"

"I... um..." Whatever I was expecting, it was not that. "I'm sorry?"

"I take it you do," he said, wryly, and it was such an uncanny shadow of Akito's own wry smile that I just nodded. "He is involved with this nonsense. I want him to stop."

"No," I blurted out without thinking at all.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm sorry, sir. But my answer is no," I said, trying to salvage rude response for my own career's sake.

"I'm afraid you don't understand.”

"Senator Meiaki, with all due respect, I am his friend, not his boss."

"And I am asking you, as his... friend, to ask him to stop. His mother is worried. She keep chattering about some Fall or Autumn or whatever, and then her event was ruined by some monsters because of that boy. I will not have it."

"He protected you. That attack would have happened regardless to whether or not he had been there." I said firmly. "I understand his mother is worried. I am worried too. But he is doing his best to protect the precious memories of this town."

"He gave up on that when he gave up on being a doctor!" Meiaki snapped. "You will make him stop, or you will face the consequences!"

"I don't think you know the full story," I said, my voice hard and angry but I tried very hard to keep my words polite. "Now, if you would like to know about what is happening with Year and how Year plans on protecting the city, I would be happy to share what I know. If all you want is to have me do is scold your son, then find someone else." I said, standing up. I was ready to leave. I had no interest trying to force myself to eat with this person.

"You're making a huge mistake," he said, narrowing his eyes at me.

"Am I, sir? I am not the one threatening the media to do his parenting for him," I said, and turned away.

"Fine. Kasegi-kun, if you will," he said, waving his hand at the girl.

"It would be my pleasure, sir," she said, and she intercepted me, grabbing me by the wrist. "The senator isn't finished speaking with you. Please sit back down."

"Let go. I am an honest reporter. I won't stand for this," I said, narrowing my eyes.

She didn't let go. Her eyes actually widened, and she stared at me, as if she just recognized me. "I do not think I will, butterfly." As soon as she said that, I realized what she had to be, and I struggled to yank my arm out of her grasp. She was very, very strong. "It's been a long time since I've had the pleasure of breaking you. Sit. Down," she said softly. A thrill of terror ran through me. I sat.

"Good. Now, listen to what this man has to say."

"Thank you, Kasegi-kun. Now, where were we?" he folded his hands in front of himself and leaned forward. She let go of my arm and stood directly behind me. I couldn't tell if she had taken memories from me. I thought she must have. It would only make sense. I didn't know what and it made me feel like a rabbit in a trap.

"Are you aware of what she is?" I asked, staring at him. The threat of her getting her hands on me again loomed. I didn't want to look her in the eye, as I very slowly, very cautiously inched a hand towards my pocket. She'd read what I was doing for certain.

"I am aware that she is an excellent body guard, and very... convincing," Meiaki said with a smile. "I want you to tell Akkun to stop. And if you are involved, you will also stop."

"Oh, she's involved," Kasegi said quietly.

"Is that so? Well, in that case, that makes this easier, doesn't it?"

"Why?" I said, pouring all the feeling I could into that word. I meant it for both of them. I couldn't understand why he'd want to encourage ReMare activity. Why would he stop the one force keeping his home intact? Why wasn't he proud of the son who had protected him. Why was she working for him, instead of destroying him?

He stood up and paced over to a painting of a glittering castle in France. "A chance to redo things, and so sway people's minds... Over and over, if need be. You are a radio host. You deal with people all the time. They listen to you. It is an intoxicating power, don't you think?"

"No." I said sharply.

"Pity. She and I, we are stronger together. This country is stronger," he said, turning back towards me.

"Half of Oara is uninhabitable," I said. "People are suffering. Spirits are suffering. What you're doing is wrong."

"One boring city is nothing in the scheme of things," he said, waving a hand dismissively.

"It's not boring!" I said, and was surprised to find that I really believed it. I had people I loved here. I had people I wanted to protect. A way of life I wanted to protect. There was beauty and joy here, even if things were messed up now.

"If you want to tell yourself that, you may. I have my eyes on a more important prize.”

"You do not know what they've taken from you! You are suffering from this too," I said, although talking to him felt like bashing my head against a brick wall.

"Am I, though?" he asked.

I finally reached the driver and swiftly brought it down to my waist. "Aki was right about you. Henshin," I said. Brown lines of light appeared around me and my 1111 armor appeared. “Not all Meiaki are related.”

He didn't seem surprised. "You're going to regret that, you know," he said simply.

I spun around to face Kasegi, both of 1111's glowing batons in my hands. I stopped short when I saw her. The elegant human woman was gone. In her place was spindly inky legs and long arms and branching antlers. Her face was long and narrow, and her back was speckled with flecks of colors. All twelve of Year's colors.

She had ripped Year right off of me before. She had made me forget being Year. She had stolen the Time Driver. She had destroyed my friendships with Rou and Akito, making me forget them. She had killed Togo.

And she was here, and I was alone.

 

 


	31. Deals and Gifts

"You have grown," Shika said simply.

I took a step back. I was going to die. I knew it. I didn't see any other chance here. I looked around desperately for an escape, but she was between me and the door.

"I did not think I would have to deal with you again, so soon," she continued.

"I... I won't let you get away with this."

"Get away with what?" she asked.

"I..." I couldn't put it into words. I didn't want to die. I didn't want her to play whatever game it was she had with Akito's father. I wanted my memories back. But it seemed so far out reach.

"Do you think you can fight me?" she asked. "Without your friends, who were so eager to throw their fragile bodies at me? Without your clever fox weaseling around where he shouldn't?"

"I..." I took a deep breath and drew on every ounce of courage I had. "I will do what I must."

She laughed and shook her head. It was terrifying. "I wouldn't. Believe it or not, I am not interested in fighting. Do as the man says, and you won't ever need to see me again, butterfly."

"You don't want to fight," I repeated back, feeling a bit stupid.

"No, I don't. I would solve my problem with you indirectly, if possible. I am no battle hungry beast." She tented her fingers in front of her and tilted her head. Her eyes glowed a deep purple. "Unlike most ReMares, unfortunately. However, do not mistake me. If you disobey," Suddenly her face was very very close to mine and I made a noise like a puppy getting it's tail stepped on. "Things will go very, very poorly for you." She stood up straight and looked down at me. I stared up at her. I could feel my heart beat in my throat. “Think about that, if you will.” And in a swift motion, she kicked me in the face. I slammed hard against the wall.

And suddenly there was a waiter leaning over me. “Ma'am, are you alright?”

“I... I think so,” I said, confused by his sudden appearance. I was no longer in armor. I quickly put a hand to my waist. All of my Memokas and the Time Driver were still there. I sighed in relief. “Where's Senator Meiaki?” I asked.

“Senator Meiaki assistant called to cancel for him, I'm afraid,” he said formally, and then gave me another concerned look, “Are you sure you're alright? Can I get you some water? Or an ambulance?”

I shook my head. “No, I'm alright.” I stood up, and rubbed the back of my head. There was a slight dent in the wall where I had hit it. “I'm so sorry, I'm not entirely sure what happened...”

That did not inspire confidence in him. “Can I at least call one of your friends or coworkers or somebody to come get you? You hit your head pretty hard.”

I started to object again, but he concern on his face changed my mind. “I'll do it. Look. I'll do it now.” I pulled out my phone and called Rou.

“Hi, Meiki. What's up?” Rou answered the phone.

I could hear Akito in the background.

“Sorry, Akkun asked if you punched his dad,” Rou said.

“Uh. No. I... Could you come get me?” I said, glancing at the waiter, who had retreated back a few feet to allow me to at least pretend like it was a private conversation.

“What happened? Are you okay?” Rou demanded, and I could tell he had stood up and started walking by the way his voice sounded.

I could hear Meiko in the background too.

“I'm fine. I may have hit my head, and the waiter doesn't want me to go home by myself,” I said.

“I'll be there. Etoile right?”

“Yup.”

He said goodbye and hung up the phone. I walked back over to the waiter. “My friend is coming to get me. Let me give you this, and I'll go wait outside.” I settled the bill with him, although he tried to object, considering he thought I was injured and stood up by my guest. But I insisted. It was the radio station's money, and because of me, he had some of his memories erased and would have to explain a dent in the wall to someone higher up.

While I waited, Meiko sent me a flurry of texts, and I reassured her that I was fine.

Rou showed up. “Hey. What happened? Can you ride?”

“Yes. I'm fine. Can I tell you back at the lab?” I said, hugging my arms to my chest.

He watched me for a moment, before tossing me a helmet. “Let's go.”

Once there, he led me upstairs. Meiko and Akito were waiting, although they were pretending they weren't. Akito was tidying the small kitchen, and Meiko was on Rou's laptop. I flopped down on the couch.

Rou fidgeted at the door for a moment, before breaking the silence. “So?”

And I couldn't help it. I burst into tears. I didn't want to, but it was like a dam broke and there was no stopping it.

Akito dropped a plate, shattering it, to run over to my side. “Shh, it's alright, it's alright. What did that asshole do? I will move heaven and hell to make him regret it.”

I shook my head. His dad was a jerk, but that was only a fraction of my overwhelming fear.

Meiko was not far behind. She pulled me into an embrace. “It's okay. We're here now. Take slow breaths,” she said and held me, singing under her breath until I stopped shaking enough to speak.

“He... he has an assistant. She's...I...” I gestured helplessly as I failed to be able to describe her with words. I took a gulp of air, as if I were drowning. “ReMare. They're... they're working together.”

“What,” Aki said flatly.

“Is that even possible? Wouldn't a ReMare take his memories?” Meiko asked, glancing over at Rou, who looked rather dumbfounded.

“I... I don't know. Probably. They do have some control over it, although they don't usually care to exert it,” Rou said. He shook his head. “What ReMare was it? Can you describe her? Did you fight? What does she want with Meiaki-san?”

I opened my mouth, to describe her, but nothing came out. I could see her plain as day, or rather, as a nightmare, in her case, but I couldn't string together the words to convey it to them. “No. I... I tried, but...” I shook my head, a wave of shame followed the fear. “I couldn't do anything. She... They want Akito and I to stop fighting ReMares.”

“I'd ask what he gets out of the deal, but I can already guess,” Akito said, his upper lip curled in disgust. “He's thinking of political gain, isn't he?”

I nodded weakly, and Akito swore.

“Did you get a good look at her?” Rou asked, circling back to the question I avoided.

“I did!” I snapped in frustration. “But I can't... I can't...” I gestured helplessly again.

“Calm down, Meiki,” Meiko reminded me. “Take a deep breath.”

I did as she said. “It's like.. I can see her but I can't. I don't think I can even say what... how the fight happened. It was barely a fight. I couldn't... I couldn't...”

“Did she get her hands on you before you transformed?” Rou asked.

“I... Yes. I think so,” I said, “But... it's not that I can't remember-”

“As I said, sometimes they are more careful with what they take,” Rou interrupted. “I think she's very deliberately trying to scare you.”

“It worked,” I said, half talking over him.

Rou continued on as if I hadn't said anything. “Which means, I have a pretty good guess as to who she is, unfortunately.”

“Who?” Akito asked.

“Shika,” Rou said. I tightened my grip on Meiko. The word weighed on the room like an anchor. No. Not enough. Like a black hole.

“Wasn't she the one who-?” Meiko asked.

“Yes,” Rou said cutting her off. “She was the one in the memory we showed you guys.”

“She's the one who messed us all up,” Akito said, his fist clenching. “She was the one that killed Togo.”

The room was silent. “What do we do?” I asked.

Rou shook his head. “We'll fight her. We've gotten stronger. I don't think she realizes how many allies you have now. How much stronger you've gotten. You're not just Year anymore.”

“I can't!” I protested. “She's got twelve colors. If I... If I lose again... what if...”

“You've got almost that many, and you've got Bright if we can figure that out again,” Rou said.

“I've only got like, five Memokas right now, Rou!” I snapped.

“Then we'll beat some sense into Ki and get Nisei to give the rest of them back! Or we'll go and get new ones! There's still tons of ReMares scavenging this city!” Rou shouted back.

“He's got a point,” Akito said, his brows furrowed. “If that man thinks I'll just fold without a fight, then he's got another thing coming. I can't believe him!” Akito cracked his knuckles.

“Akito, one of us will die,” I said. “We can't just fight her! She said that if you or I transformed, she'd make sure I regretted it.”

“Or,” Meiko said firmly, interrupting the shouting with her quiet voice. We fell silent to hear what she had to say. “We have our Christmas party and worry about that later.”

“WHAT?” All three of us shouted at the same time, and then broke into separate rants.

“I can't believe you're just going to let them get away with this, Meiko! This is an obstruction of justice,” Akito argued.

At the same time Rou said, “We've fought high ReMares before, we can do it again. We just have to have a plan!”

“I am very very worried, Meiko!” I said, pulling away from her to stare at her like she had just grown three horns. “You can't be thinking of a party at a time like this!”

She waited patiently until we ran out of steam. “I agree that this is incredibly serious. And that we have to do something. But if we go running after Ki or Nisei, one of these two will transform, and I can believe that this ReMare would appear immediately and then wipe the floor with us.” She glanced at Rou who looked a little uncomfortable, but nodded. She shifted her gaze to Akito, “Rest assured, Akito, we will do what we can to stop your father, and fix things. But before you rush off to destroy him, think for a moment, Mr. Ran Off to be Maneki's Lap Dog, that ReMares occasionally make us do very stupid things, even without taking our memories.”

“He's not like that,” Akito grumbled.

“Even if he is the evilest scum bag in the world, if there's a chance that it's because a ReMare is making him forget that he's not actually interested in kicking puppies and ruling the world, we should deal with that first,” Meiko said firmly. “I don't like it any better than you do, Akito, but if we fuck this up, you're down another family member, no matter how garbage he is.”

“Not all Meiji's are related,” Akito grumbled.

“Jeeze, I'm not saying to be friends with him!” Meiko ran a hand through her hair, “Just don't go wild until we know how to fix this. At the very least for your mom, Aki Aki.”

Akito stared at her for long moment, and then sighed. “Fine. But it's not like we can just stop transforming. If there are ReMares around, we need to stop them.”

“She didn't say anything about me and Rou, did she?” Meiko asked, glancing at me.

“No...” I said reluctantly.

“Then we'll keep fighting, if we need to,” Meiko said, folding her hands in her lap. “In the mean time, we will have our Christmas party, and we will enjoy it.”

“It's too stressful to think about having a party now,” I said. It seemed wrong. Like making a festival out of a plane crash.

“Do you trust me?” Meiko asked, staring at me.

“Of course I do, but,” I objected.

“Then trust me. We should do this,” Meiko said firmly.

“Why?” I demanded.

“It's Christmas. We don't know what will happen.” She smiled. “And if we can't do anything, then it'll be worse, won't it? I know you're scared now, but I'd rather you didn't get antsy and run off to fight.”

“I don't think I would,” I said, crossing my arms. Rou and Meiko exchanged glances and Akito laughed. “I wouldn't!”

“Sorry, kiddo. But that's exactly what you'd do. You were the one who ran off to go punch that Abomination ReMare until you got stuck, on the off chance that I might come rescue you,” Akito said. “As much as I hate it, she might be right.”

I sighed. I didn't like it. I didn't think the ReMares would sit around while we did nothing. And I was certain that Shika would wreck us if we did something. The only option felt like paralysis and it made me want to run far, far away.

And that was hardly an option.

I took a deep breath. “I'm scared. I can't help but feel like anything we do will make her mad... Even a Christmas party. I don't know what to do.”

“If it makes you feel better, one of us can stick around to make sure you aren't caught out alone like that again, until we figure out how to fix this,” Rou offered.

“Yeah! We can hang out here. It'll be fun. And then Meiko will work her magic and everything will be fine!” Akito said, and I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or genuinely warming up to the idea. It was possible that it was both.

“Exactly,” Meiko said.

I agreed reluctantly, and Meiko and I both stayed at the lab with them for the next few days. If we had to go out, we left in pairs. Meiko and I went to work together. Akito and Meiko went shopping together. Sharky was delighted to have all of us around more, and helped us put up garlands and other Christmas decorations.

I worked up the courage to tell Okuda-san that the meeting with Senator Meiaki had been a bust. She stared at me for a long moment, and asked “What meeting? Did he want a meeting? I can arrange a meeting.”

I waved my hand in front of my face wildly, desperate to reject that idea. “If you don't remember, then it's not important. Or it is, but it's a bad idea to dig into it.”

“If you say so, Meiki,” she said, and went back to work.

The day of the party, Rou dragged me out to look at motorcycles. He had been rattling off specs and design flaws of each one, his dark eyes glittering. I nodded along, not really sure what he was going on about. I liked my Synchrocycle, and I definitely wouldn't trade it for anything, but I didn't know that much about bikes. “And this one is powerful, but the engine isn't as streamlined... What do you think?” he asked. “Would it suit Meiko?”

I had been half distracted by a couple laughing and talking about which bike they wanted to get. I shook my head. If only things could be that carefree. “I don't know, Rou. I think she'd like something fast, though,” I said.

“You're right, but it also has to suit her powers, or I'm not sure if the Pair Device will work correctly,” Rou said, and crouched down to look at another bike.

“Do you really think it's a good idea?” I asked, watching the couple.

“What, making her a bike? Yeah? It doesn't make sense for her not to have one, you know. Especially if only the two of us can fight for now,” Rou said.

“I guess so,” I said, although I knew he was right. I was being contrary just because I felt uneasy. The couple broke out into an argument, and I frowned. There was a flicker of black. Of course there was. “Rou,” I said, already reaching for my belt. I froze when I realized what I was doing. I couldn't transform like that. Shika would know. And then...

Rou looked up, and noticed. “A ReMare?” He asked, grabbing for his own belt. “Stay back. Henshin!” I took a few steps back as a flurry of pink petals of light engulfed him. He stepped forward as Spring, and dashed forward, expertly avoiding the motorcycles on display. He summoned his wrist knives and punched the blot. It dissolved into an inert puddle, sparkles of light dispersing back to the couple, who looked confused. Rou gave them a salute before dropping his transformation and returning to me.

“It was just a little Blot. It almost wasn't even worth the energy of transforming,” Rou said, brushing his hair out of his face. “Are you alright?”

“I'm fine,” I said bitterly, angry with myself. “I should have been able to do that.”

“Hey,” Rou said, getting in my face. “We're a team. Back up and let the Mei Brigade help you, you idiot.”

“I know!” I snapped back. “I'm not mad at you!” I stressed the last word. “It's me that sucks.”

Rou softened immediately. “Idiot,” he said again, more gently. I shrugged and looked away. He was quiet for a moment. “Come on. I've got enough data. We can go back now.”

“Alright,” I said, still surly.

“Come on, I'll race you, slow poke,” Rou said, nudging me with his elbow as he walked over to his bike.

“Oh, you're on,” I said, taking the bait to distract myself.

We raced our way back to the cafe, and I pulled in seconds before him. “Nice,” he said, giving me a high five. “Come on, let's go in.”

We had been slowly decorating the cafe, but Akito and Meiko had completely reorganized the room so that the tree was in a more of a focal point, and he had set up a small stage with flat screen TV and a karaoke machine. The room was an explosion of red and green and soft white. Meiko was wearing a Santa hat, and Akito had a truly terrible sweater that was covered with snowflake patterns and dancing Santas and pompoms. He tossed me a Santa hat, and bounced over to Rou and shoved him in an equally terrible sweater. “Merry Christmas!” he said cheerfully.

“It's not even that cold,” Rou grumbled, struggling to get his arms into the holes of the sweater so they weren't pinned to his sides.

“Doesn't matter!" Akito said. “Meiki-chan, can I offer you some spiced cider?”

“Um, sure,” I said. He handed me a mug of a hot drink that smelled like apples and spices. I took a sip and it was warm and comforting, even if the taste fell flat in my mouth. “This is pretty good,” I said. He gave me a thumbs up, before distributing more mugs around the room.

“Cheers!” Rou said, raising his glass a little. The rest of us echoed him, and Meiko got up on stage to sing a very beautiful Walking in a Wonder Land. Akito followed with a very silly rendition of Last Christmas, I gave you my heart. I did a duet with Meiko, singing Baby It's Cold Outside.

Sharky joined in by singing a very, very loud version of We Wish You A Merry Christmas, which chased Sen right from the party entirely. Arachne still wasn't talking, although I still suspected she could. It was hard to tell.

“Alright, Rou, your turn!” Akito said, pushing him towards the stage.

“Absolutely not! I can't sing!” Rou said, shaking his head.

“Come ooon, I can't either, and I got up there just fine,” Akito said.

“Oh, just leave him be, Aki Aki,” Meiko said, curling up on the couch with her mug. Akito made a face at her and she just raised an eyebrow at him.

“It's not like any of us will judge you, Rou,” I said.

Akito latched onto that. “Yeah! Like she said! It's just us, nobody here will make fun of you, Rou.”

“You'll make fun of me,” Rou said, shoving Akito's chest a little.

“If I promise not to, will you do it?” Akito asked, letting Rou go.

“SHARKY WILL GO AGAIN!” Sharky volunteered, swimming happily around the stage.

“Sharky, your song was lovely, but you'll get the cops called on us,” Akito laughed, “You're very loud.”

“YES!” Sharky grinned proudly, as if that had been the highest praise, instead of gentle ribbing.

“Rou?” Akito asked again, putting a hand on Rou's shoulder.

Rou sighed, “Fine, fine.” He downed his whole mug of cider before going up to the stage. He picked Jingle Bells, and although his English was terrible and awkward, his voice was fine. I joined in, and then Akito and Meiko, and by the end, Rou was more comfortable with singing.

Halfway into an old Carpenters song, the door chime rang. “Whose that?” Rou asked.

“Santa?” I suggested, although with our luck that seemed unlikely.

Meiko stood up. “Special guest.”

“You invited more people?” Akito asked, surprised.

“I did,” she said simply. The door jingled again and Nisei stood in the doorway. He hesitated when he saw us all looking at him.

“She said I should come,” he said, pointing accusingly at Meiko.

“Yes. You're welcome to join us, Nisei,” Meiko said simply, and handed him a mug of spiced cider. “Here. Merry Christmas.”

Akito glanced between Nisei and Meiko, before throwing an arm around both of them and hugging them. “Alright!”

Meiko extracted herself from the hug, but she was beaming, her cheeks red. Nisei had a harder time getting away, and he looked very confused. Finally Akito let him go. “It's good to have family around for the holidays,” Akito said.

“I guess so,” Nisei said, looking away, his short black hair ruffled and messy for once.

“And congrats on upgrading, yeah? Midsummer was awesome,” Akito said, “and you took out Tigra! That was amazing.”

“Bright did most of the work,” Nisei corrected him carefully. “But... that is sort of why I came.” He held out a packet in plain brown paper. “I can't use these anymore. I am to give them back.” He held the package out to me.

“For me?” I said, surprised.

“Yes,” he said, and bowed sharply and held the package out farther. “Here.”

I took it cautiously, and carefully ripped open the top side of the paper. Inside was a black box. I pulled it out. “Thanks,” I said. It was nice. Black leather and about half the height of a tissue box.

“No, open it.” Nisei insisted.

I glanced at him and did as I was told. Inside, sat six Memokas. Pink Sakura, Light Blue Rain, Orange Obon, Indigo Witch, Red New, and a new one, a bright ultramarine blue.

“It is from me,” Nisei said.

“This is... Thank you. Really. So much.” I said, running my fingers over the Memokas.

“So... he's...You're...” Rou said, the words getting struck in his mouth. Nisei glanced at him.

“Ki had nothing to do with it,” Nisei said firmly.

“He didn't put them all back into Memokas?” I asked, curious. Nisei froze, and shook his head.

“He did,” Rou said firmly, inspecting the Memokas. Nisei looked away.

“Then what's his game?” Akito asked. “He doesn't want us to think he's involved?”

“He's not,” Nisei reiterated, and then sighed. “Taking out Tigra had some... side effects. I can't stay in the Under. Ki can't protect me, but he thinks you can.”

“Side effects?” Rou asked, “Like what?”

At the same time Akito said, “Of course we can. Welcome to the Mei Brigade, bro.”

I thought for a moment that Nisei would refuse like he had in the past, but instead, Nisei offered Akito a nervous smile. I was fairly certain it was the first time I had seen that expression on his face. He glanced back at Rou, “I'm not obligated to tell you that.”

“Then tell us where Ki is! He can join us too!” Rou said, getting aggravated.

Nisei shook his head. “Right now, there is a vacuum of power. Before, Maneki, and her other form Tigra, were able to control it by keeping the lower ranking ReMares busy with her ploys. She didn't mean to, but it slowed down the spread of the Void Lands.”

“Why would she do that?” Meiko asked.

Nisei shrugged. “I don't know...” He hesitated. “ReMares... when they first get blots, a lot of them try to remain who they were. And even as the hunger gets overwhelming, it... Well, they forget those intentions, but some of them get stuck in patterns that inadvertently do what they wanted to do before, even a little.”

“You say that like you aren't one,” Meiko said, raising an eyebrow.

For a second he looked confused and embarrassed, and then he scowled. “Well, some of us don't really care what happens to humans and just want to live,” he snarled back.

“Easy, brother. It doesn't matter what brought you here, we're on the same side,” Akito said.

“What does this have to with Ki?” Rou said, annoyed that Nisei had gotten distracted.

“Ki thinks he can keep it from going completely wild, but I'm not entirely sure he doesn't just want to defend his new place of power.” Nisei shrugged. “As I said, some try to have good intentions.”

Rou frowned and paced away.

“Forgive him. He's worried about his friend. Now, since you were handing out presents, I say we start!” Akito said, gesturing towards the Christmas tree.

“I have other gifts too,” Nisei said awkwardly. He handed Akito a thin package, which he unwrapped gleefully.

“A... knife?” Meiko asked, leaning over his shoulder.

“A kitchen knife!” Akito said, grinning. “That's actually really thoughtful, Nisei! Thanks!”

Nisei squirmed and looked away, before handing a package to Meiko. “You too. Thank you for your help at the radio station.” She got a small blue ribbon, which she thanked him politely for. Nisei hesitated before walking over to Rou. “And you.”

Rou glowered at him. “What?”

Nisei gave him the package, which Rou reluctantly opened. Inside was a small red fox pin, on top of a pink fox origami paper. Rou was quiet for a long moment before gently touching the pin. “Thank you.”

“I could not find a pink pin,” Nisei said, brushing off the thanks. “It comes with orders.”

“Orders?” Rou said, incredulous.

“Yes. Ki says not to give up, and to be very careful.” Nisei recited. “He also said that you're not allowed to die.”

“I'll do my best,” Rou said, his mouth twisting to a wry smile. “Thanks.”

“My turn!” Akito said, and he shoved a large basket of baked goods into Nisei's hands.

“I had the impression that you didn't know I was coming,” Nisei said as he took it, surprised.

“I didn't, but I thought you'd show up eventually,” Akito said, before gifting Meiko a very soft and very beautiful leather jacket, which she cooed over and put on immediately. He was collaborating with Rou's plans to make her a bike. He gave Rou a pair of ridiculously cool black shoes that had small pink lights every time he stepped. “It was hard finding those for adults,” Akito commented, as Rou tried them on. Then he handed a gift to me. I opened it, and it was a beautiful white vest that had a subtle shimmer of color to it. I touched the soft fabric lightly, watching the colors change.

“It's beautiful,” I said, and thanked him.

Meiko went next. She gave me several signed CDs of a couple of popular American musicians. She grinned while I excitedly looked each one over carefully. Nisei even came over to look at them too.

“Have you listened to this one?” I asked him, and he shook his head, which of course meant that I launched into a distracting round of Karaoke with songs from the CD. Nisei listened intently.

Meanwhile, Meiko gave Rou a very handsome silver watch, which he put on. It looked very good on him. To Akito, she gave a very fluffy orange hat and scarf. “You're going to overheat,” she said, laughing as he flung the scarf over his face dramatically.

“Are you saying I'm too hot?” Aki asked, grinning and blowing her a kiss.

She rolled her eyes at him and gave Nisei a book on radio broadcasting, which he received with stiff thanks, and started poring over it.

Rou went next. He gave Akito a set of small figurines that had been made to look like each of us in our armor. “Aaah, this is so cool!” Akito said, inspecting the small Fall figurine. Akito gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, and Rou blushed and muttered, but seemed pleased nonetheless.

He went over to Meiko and gave her the new Pair Device. “It's not finished, yet. I wanted your input. But you'll have your own bike soon.”

“Wow, Rou, this is...” Meiko gave him a hug. “Thank you so much.”

He gave me massive book on how to make hundreds of things out of origami, and a pack of his special origami paper. “These should help... If you need to know what different things can do, let me know.”

“Thanks, Rou,” I said, flipping through the book.

“THAT ONE IS SHARKY!” Sharky shouted when I passed the page for a shark origami.

“It is! Wow, you're complicated, huh?” I said, tracing over the steps to make her.

Rou looked over awkwardly at Nisei, who was still invested in the book Meiko gave him. “I didn't know you would be here.”  
Nisei glanced up. “That's fine.”   
“No, give me your driver,” Rou demanded.

“I don't know much about Christmas, but one doesn't usually order someone to give you something instead of actually getting them a gift,” Nisei said, narrowing his eyes.

Akito broke up the fight before Rou could get riled up. “He's going to tune it up. I dunno if Ki's been doing it or not, but it definitely helps. Makes transformation times and weapon loading times a little shorter. And it makes it a bit harder to get hurt through the armor.”

“Oh, I am mistaken then. Thank you, Rou,” Nisei said, handing over his driver.

Last was my turn. I gave Akito a sign that I had hand lettered for the cafe. He had mentioned it once, and I had done it ages ago, saving it either for Christmas or his birthday. I also gave Rou a sign, decorated in all of the seasons' sigils, and one of my own devising for Year. He traced over the lines carefully. “This is beautiful. Thank you.”

“You had me drawing them a lot, I thought they would look cool like this,” I said, a little embarrassed. “It's really nothing...”

“No, I like it.” Rou said, shaking his head.

“It has power,” Nisei said simply. We glanced at him and he shrugged.

“YES! IT'S VERY STRONG! GOOD THING!” Sharky swam circles around Nisei, who froze to avoid knocking into her.

“If you say so,” I said, and gave Meiko her present. “This also isn't much, but... I thought you might like it.” It was a small sketchbook filled with quotes from her favorite poems and songs, that I wrote in my best calligraphy.

She thumbed through the book slowly and leaned against me. “I love it, Meiki,” she said softly.

As we cleaned up the colorful paper, I took a moment to go over to Nisei. “I'm sorry, I also didn't know you were coming, or I would have made you something too.”

“No.” He glanced away. “I took your Memokas. I was able to become stronger, but I suppose that was inconvenient for you.”

“A bit,” I said, “but I'm glad I have them back now.” Was I? I wasn't even sure I could use them without getting shredded. “Glad to have you with us though.”

He opened his mouth like he was going to object, but shut it instead and nodded. “Me too.”

“Say, have you had Christmas cake before?” I asked him.

“I have not had Christmas cake,” he said carefully.

“Akito? Did you make a cake?” I asked.

Akito glanced at Meiko, who shrugged. “I... didn't. We didn't want it to be a bad reminder...”

Oh. Right. “Well... Can't have a Christmas party without a cake. Nisei, want to help me make one?” I asked, rolling up my sleeves. He nodded and stood up carefully. “Akito, can I borrow your kitchen?”

“I guess,” he said, making a face at me .

“I won't mess up your system, you nerd. You can help if you want,” I said, grabbing Nisei's arm.

And suddenly everything shifted. I was outside on the arcade. Nisei... Was that Nisei? He looked younger, his hair styled to be spiky, and he was wearing a bright blue windbreaker over his all black school uniform. He carried a plain white box. “YO! AKKUN!” he shouted back down the arcade.

“Dude, not so loud, lil' bro,” Akito said, hurrying with several boxes of his own. His hair was shorter, but it was still dyed blond.

“Is it really okay for a doctor to say dude?” The younger boy asked.

“Togo, I can say whatever I want,” Akito said flippantly. So the boy was Togo. This had to be before the fight with Shika. “Careful with the cake.” He took the box from Togo. “What were you yelling about?”

Togo pointed at some darkened windows. It looked a little familiar. The shops near by... This had to be Momiji Cafe. It had a big cabbage drawn on the window. “Look, that Thai food place you like moved out.”

“That's a pity. Cabbages and Condoms was delicious,” Akito said. Togo snickered. “Hey, it's guaranteed not to get you pregnant.” They both giggled like idiots for a few minutes.

Togo sighed and stared at the closed up building a little longer. “I'd like to open a restaurant someday,” Togo said longingly. “It probably won't happen though...”

“Why not?” Akito asked, ruffling his hair. “You're a pretty good cook.”

“You know why,” Togo said, swatting his hand away.

“Ah, that old man can eat a shoe. Don't worry about what he thinks,” Akito said, waving his hand.

The memory faded, and I stared wide eyed at Nisei, who pulled his arm away from me to start heading into the kitchen. “Nisei... That was Togo's memory.”

 


	32. Antagonism

Nisei turned around slowly. “What?”

“WHAT?” Akito shouted, sliding in his stocking feet across the floor to the both of us.

“WHAT!!!” Sharky shouted, deciding that this was an excellent game.

“I... Nisei, sometimes I fall into people's memories when I touch them, but that was definitely not yours,” I said, brushing my fringe out of my eyes.

“What happened?” Akito grabbed me by my shoulders.

“It looked like you were both shopping, and Togo said your favorite Thai food place closed, and that he wanted to open a restaurant,” I said quickly. The intensity in his gaze was frightening.

“He's in there?” Akito shifted his attention to Nisei and I swear, if Akito's stare could have bored holes into him, Nisei would look like Swiss cheese. “He's alive? Togo? If you're there, do something!”

Nisei stared back at him, his expression blank.

“Come on! I know you're there,” Akito grabbed Nisei's collar, shaking him roughly.

Meiko and I both stepped in. She took Akito by the shoulders and I gently pulled Nisei away from him. “Aki, calm down,” Meiko said softly. As she pulled him away, Akito broke down, sinking to the floor. He didn't cry, but you could tell he was making a physical effort not to.

“What will you do, brother?” Nisei asked, looking down at Akito.

“Don't call me that! You stole his face,, and now you've stolen his memories!” Akito hurled the words at him like they were weapons.

Nisei shook his head. “You named me brother. You knew what I was. You said it didn't matter. Will you go back on that now?” Akito stared up at him, his shoulder's shuddering. “I will say it again. What will you do, brother?”

Rou went over to Akito and added his hand to Akito's shoulder. “Akkun.”

Akito took a deep breath and let it go slowly. “No.. You're right. I'm sorry. I did say that, didn't I?” He touched Rou and Meiko's hands on his shoulders, and then stood back up like his legs were heavy. “Nisei, I don't know. I really don't. Togo is important to me.”

“Fair enough,” Nisei said, and glanced over to me. “Is it still possible to make the cake? I would like to learn how to make your Human Christmas Cake.”

“Huh? Oh!” I glanced at the others. Meiko nodded. “Sure. Come on.” As I led him into the kitchen, I saw Rou sling an arm around Akito and start leading him back over to the couch. “Alright, we'll need some ingredients. The pantry is there,” I pointed, and listed off ingredients. Nisei picked them out and put them on the cooking surface.

“Does that happen often?” Nisei asked, setting a large container of flour on the table.

“What? Akito?” I asked, still thinking about his outburst. “No. He's normally more easy going, at least on the surface.”

“No. I... I understand that, at least. Maneki used me to influence him. He is concerned about his brother,” Nisei said.

“Then what? Get that big bowl there,” I said, pointing, and got out a set of measuring cups and spoons.

“You. The memory thing,” he asked.

“I don't know. A lot, lately,” I said.

“It surprised me,” Nisei said.

“Yeah, me too,” I said, a little sarcastically.

“I have looked before, you know. To see if this body had memories. When I was hungry. And when I was curious about Akito,” Nisei said slowly.

I felt like commenting on that would be like stepping into a minefield. “Three cups of that,” I said, offering him the measuring cup. He dutifully doled out the portions into the mixing bowl. At length, I figured out what to say, “So, it's new?”

“It seems so. Maneki might have had them,” Nisei said.

“Is that why you're here?” I asked, adding the next ingredient to the batter.

“No,” he said. After that, I couldn't get him to say anything more on the subject, so we worked together quietly.

While it was baking, I ducked out of the kitchen to check on the others, leaving a curious Nisei staring through the glass window in the oven door. Akito had recovered enough to have challenged Meiko to a particularly fast song about girl and boy seating arrangements. Rou was half singing along, and half fussing with Nisei's driver. It seemed calm enough to go back out. I popped back into the kitchen. Nisei was still watching the oven. “A watched pot never boils," I told him, leaning against the door frame.

“This isn't a pot. Nor should it boil.” Nisei said.

“Don't be so literal. Don't you want to come hang out with the rest of us? You could sing a song on the karaoke machine,” I said.

He glanced up. “I do like karaoke.”

“You do?” I asked, and he nodded.

“Sometimes I go with other students,” Nisei said.

“Wasn't that just a cover story or whatever to get you into the radio station with us?” I asked, leading the way out. This time he followed.

“No,” he frowned. “Or at least, it isn't anymore. It is an interesting way to spend my time.”

I wasn't going to argue with that. “Hey, Nisei wants a turn,” I said, and Meiko passed him the karaoke tablet that was paired with the machine hooked up to the TV.

“Oho? What's this? You can sing? What's it going to be? Enka?” Akito teased, before singing a few dramatic bars about the ocean from a very old song. His eyes still looked sharp, but I could tell he was trying.

“Or something. I apologize if it is too long,” Nisei said, before setting down the tablet and stepping onto the stage. He took the microphone from Akito, who bowed off the stage as Nisei's song loaded up onto the screen. Words appeared on the screen. “YOU SUFFER BUT WHY!” Nisei snarled. The song abruptly ended, and Nisei bowed, before setting the microphone down and stepping off the stage, and sitting on one of the cafe chairs. The whole thing took less than ten seconds.

Akito was silent for a moment, staring at Nisei. Nisei raised an eyebrow, and Akito burst out laughing. “What the heck was that? It was so short. I didn't think you had a sense of humor, dang.” Akito gave him a noogie, which Nisei tolerated with a slightly smug smile.

We took turns singing a little longer, and Nisei's next song was actually normal song length, although it was still metal, which Sharky joined in enthusiastically.

Nisei and I pulled the cake out of the oven and set it in the freezer to cool quickly. We frosted and decorated it. “You do the honors, Nisei.” I gestured to the cake, and he lifted it up carefully, carrying it into the cafe. The others ate the cake while I had another glass of hot cider, and watched them enjoy it.

“So, how was your first human Christmas cake?” Akito asked.

“It was very sweet,” Nisei said.

“It was too sweet, Meiki,” Meiko complained.

“Sorry, I know you don't like it as sweet. But I figured traditional was better this time.” I shrugged.

“I do not think it was too sweet. Just very sweet,” Nisei said, more relaxed than I had ever seen him.

“I think I've fixed the screaming thing, but I can't be sure. I'm not as good at this as Ki... Regardless, I've tuned it up anyway.” Rou said, handing over the Summer Driver.

“What screaming thing?” Nisei asked.

“When you transform?” I said, stealing a bite of Meiko's unfinished cake, half hoping it would taste good. It did not. It was like taking a bite of shaving cream on a sponge.

“That is not...” Nisei said, and looked uncomfortable. He shook his head. “It's fine. Nothing is broken.”

“Oh, sorry. We thought that maybe something got damaged when that moth ReMare stole your memories,” Rou said. “I didn't think that it might be something wrong with you and not the driver.”

“Nothing is wrong with me!” Nisei's body language stiffened again. “I yelled because I wanted to!”

“YELLING IS FUN!” Sharky added in.

“I was just trying to help! If you want to be on our side you have to communicate sometimes!” Rou shouted back.

“I will communicate my fist into your face!” Nisei shouted back, standing up.

“Pot, kettle,” Akito said lightly, stepping between them with two plates of cake. “Both of you. We already used up our dramatic fight today, and frankly, I did it better, and with better motivation. Eat some more cake.” He shoved a plate at each of them. There was a quiet moment where the two of them decided whether or not they wanted to give in, and I could hear music from outside. It sounded like a lot of children singing. I wondered if there were carolers.

Rou made a face at Akito and sat back down. “I'm not trying to be dramatic, idiot.”  
“Sure you aren't, Jiro-chan,” Akito said. “Nisei? You're a terrible liar.”

Nisei scowled, shushed Akito, standing back up, alert. There was a loud whumping sound outside, and the building shook. The singing stopped. “There's a ReMare.”

“What? Where?” Rou demanded, standing back up.

“Out,” Nisei said, heading towards the door. Rou was shortly behind, and Meiko followed, glancing at Akito and me. Akito was already moving to follow them. I sighed and followed along. Outside, a group of children in uniforms for some private international school looked lost and confused. Their parents too, were wandering off aimlessly. Whump! The ground shook again. A massive elephant with glowing purple streaks looping through it's inky black body as stomping down the arcade.

Sharky rushed forward, nipping at the elephant, which largely ignored the little shark.

Rou and Meiko put their drivers at their waists. Nisei started to, but he noticed that Akito and I were not following suit.

“What are you waiting for?” he demanded.

Akito glanced at me and I hesitated. “I'll follow your lead, kiddo.”

It was hard, seeing people actually in danger. I wanted to help. But Shika's warning had me rooted. I didn't know what to do. I didn't want to lose any of my friends. It terrified me that I had such a large part of my life missing because of Shika. My hands were shaking just thinking about it.

The elephant took a heavy step forward, shaking the ground. The children from the international school yelled and huddled together more. “I'm going on ahead!” Rou shouted. “Henshin!” He stamped his driver and ran through his transformation sigil, quickly getting to the elephant ReMare and dealing out a flurry of attacks. The elephant paid him about as little mind as he had Sharky.

“It's just one color, the three of us should be able to handle it,” Meiko said soothingly, as I clenched my fist around my driver.

“Hathi is one of the monotones. He's like Ki. Or Anubis. It doesn't matter how many colors he gets, he's going to end up turning them all his color,” Nisei said. “Don't underestimate him.” The last sentence was dripping with disdain.

Hathi finally got annoyed with Spring, and knocked him aside casually with his tusks. Spring smashed into the window of a drug store. “Spring...” Meiko took a step forward, wincing in sympathy. “Henshin!” Meiko shouted, and finished her transformation. “We can handle it, Meiki. Leave it to us.” Winter put her hand on my shoulder, before hurrying to help Spring. She grappled with Hathi's horns, drawing him away from Spring. Winter's physical power actually slowed the elephant ReMare a little, but it was clear she was struggling.

Selfish. I should be helping. I should be at her side.

But what would Shika do if I did?

“I expected more from you, butterfly.” Nisei said, looking away from me. “Henshin.” He stamped his belt, and transformed. He roared like an angry beast, and tore after Winter.

Akito rested his hands behind his head, watching the fight. I looked at him pleadingly, hoping he'd say something that echoed Winter's words, that they were fine and that my decision was okay. He shrugged a little. “Well. He's not entirely wrong. I want to fight, but I'll trust your instincts.”

In a fit of anger and frustration, I shouted, “I want to fight!” and raised my driver up, as if starting my transformation pose.

Togo dead. My belt ripped from my body, my armor disappearing. Year disappearing. My friends, my idiot boys who I loved dearly, gone. If I happened again, would I find them again? Would I recover again? Would any of us be left to recover? I dropped my arm down, my fingers loose. “I can't. It's already my fault that Togo died.” The Time Driver slipped from my fingers, clattering on the brick tiles of the arcade floor.

Akito was silent for a long moment, and then I heard him move to my side. He knelt down on the ground and picked up the Time Driver. He looked at it, and then up at me. “It's that what's bothering you, Meiki?” He glanced over at the fight. “I don't know what's going to happen, but I know that when I was scared and didn't want to fight, someone told me off for not using my power to protect the people in this city.” He glanced back at me, a sparkle in his eye. Summer rushed Hathi with his nunchaku, and the elephant ReMare snorted and stomped, sending Summer flying back towards us. He landed near us, leaning on his knee for a moment to catch his balance. “Things aren't lost yet. Shika has Togo's memories,” Akito continued. “And you're not alone. We can all fight now.”

“Tch,” Summer said, standing up, before roaring and charging the elephant again.

I stared down at Akito.

“What I'm saying is, let's fuck stuff up until we win. Fight with me?” He held up the Time Driver to me.

“You had better not be proposing right now Aki Aki,” Winter called over, exasperated.

“She started it!” Akito called back, sticking his tongue out at her.

I couldn't help but dissolve into a mess of giggles. It was so stupid. Of course we would have to fight Shika. Of course we would mess up until we won. Of course I wasn't alone.

“Well?” he asked, grinning.

“Alright, you silly boy.” I took the Time Driver from him. “Let's do this!” I raised up the Time Driver and dropped it down to my waist. It looped around securely. Then, I picked a Memoka from the belt loop. It felt good to have so many at my disposal. This time, I picked the new one, the ultramarine blue, and drew across the Time Driver's screen.

At the same time, Akito set his own Autumn Driver to his waist and stamped it once.

“Henshin!” we said together, and there was a cacophony of belt noises as we both transformed. Akito stepped through his sigil, and a fist of blue light pounded down over my head and through me.

“ONI, OUT!” The belt chimed, to rumbling drums. The blue light disappeared, and I was standing there in blue armor with red trim. My cape had an angry blue oni's face on it. And I felt strong. Very, very strong.

We both charged towards Hathi, who was struggling with Winter. Winter had entangled her massive sword in Hathi's tusks, while Summer had managed to get on the ReMare's back. Spring was riddling the ReMare's sides with small pink wounds.

Fed up, the elephant tossed Summer off, and pushed up onto his hind legs like a bucking bronco. Hathi slammed his front feet into the ground. Summer and Spring went flying, and Fall abrakadabra'd his way over to Spring. He caught him before he crashed into another building. Summer skidded to a halt farther down the Arcade.

Winter also skidded back, towards me. “Glad you could join us,” she said, between heavy breaths.

“So am I,” I said, nodding a little. And it was true. It wasn't that I was no longer afraid of Shika. I was. Very much so. But if I was with Mei Brigade, I could do it.

“It is not very sporting to fight five on one, even if all of you hit like butterflies,” Hathi rumbled.

“Prism Charge Complete!” My belt chimed, and I drew the Memoka. Blue light erupted from it, forming the shape of a heavy looking club. “Prism Club, Go, go go!”

I lifted it up and rested it on my shoulder. “I'm the only one here that's a butterfly, Hathi, and you're not going to like it when I hit you,” I retorted, feeling smug and comfortable in my power. Hathi only snorted and shuddered, ink sloughing off into wet piles on the arcade floor, until all that was left was a bipedal figure with an elephant face. The ink piles rose up and became five identical but slightly smaller elephant ReMares. Although I say smaller, they were still a good head and shoulders taller than me.

“Let's do this,” Winter said, clapping me on the shoulder. I nodded and we both charged at the elephant ReMares. Two of them split off from the group and blocked our attack in parallel motions.

I raised my arm to swing at the elephant ReMare again, and he countered by grabbing my wrist. He was also incredibly strong, and I struggled to get out of his grip. I raised my free hand to punch him, but he caught that one too. “LET. ME. GO!” I shouted, and flung my head forward to smash into his face.

That got him to let go. He staggered back, and shook his head, fixing whatever damage I had done to his inky face. I raised up my club again.

Winter was using her sword to it's full extent, switching between using it as a shield and as a weapon, trading blows with the powerful ReMare. Spring was doing better now that he had Fall with him. Both of them were quick, and they were able to poke holes into two of the elephants and retreat while the other attacked, without giving the elephant enough time to get his hands on them, or stomp them out of the way, although they didn't seem to be doing much damage. Summer didn't seem to care about strategy. He was just rushing in and hitting until he got thrown back.

“Summer! Power up! Henshin!” Fall said, stamping his belt again and stepping through a second sigil and becoming Deep Fall. Summer nodded and followed suit, becoming Midsummer and tackling one of the elephants.

The elephant that I was fighting noticed my distraction and took a page out of Midsummer's book and tackled me. I yelled in surprise, and grappled with him on the ground, hitting him with a free hand, but his inky body just squelched ineffectively under my fists. I wrestled the hand with the Prism Club free, and bashed it against the elephant's back. It fell limp on top of me, but unfortunately as dead weight. I was pinned. “Heavy!” I grunted, trying to push it off so I could breath.

Winter did a wild slash at the elephant she was fighting before running over to me and slashing the ReMare across the back. This time it melted into a puddle of goo across my chest. I stood up while wiping it off. “Ugh, gross.” I complained.

“Gross,” Winter agreed.

The other elephant started stumbling towards us, and in a synchronized motion, we both lashed out with our weapons and hit the elephant at the same time. Dead ink splashed onto the ground, inert.

Midsummer had managed to destroy one of the ReMares, and was now circling warily with one of the ones that Deep Fall and Spring had riddled with holes. Spring was slowing down, his breathing and movements erratic. Deep Fall was working hard to keep the elephant away from Spring.

We hurried over to help. I crashed into the ReMare in a stand off with Midsummer, knocking it aside. Midsummer's belt chimed “FUGITIVE COLOR!” He jumped into the air, and planted his foot squarely in the elephant ReMare's face. It burst into ink, and fell to the ground defeated.

Winter sliced down just as the elephant was about to attack, shielding Deep Fall from the blow. Deep Fall jumped up into the air, his belt shouting “Focus Point!” and Deep Fall landed, with dual slashes with his twin swords. The ReMare melted into into a puddle.

For a moment, we continued to be on guard, but no further attack came. Spring staggered and wiped his driver clear, his armor dissolving. He had a little blood at the side of his mouth, and his face looked rather gray. The rest of us also cleared our transformations and Akito offered Rou a shoulder to lean on. “Careful, Jiro-kun. Don't over do it.”

“I'm fine, I'm fine. Did anyone get the spirit orbs?” Rou asked, dismissively, although he took Akito's support anyway.

“I didn't see...”I started, and I noticed Meiko staring at Nisei.

Nisei had his hands on his knees, breathing hard. He glanced up and also noticed Meiko's stare. “What? What are you looking at?”

“Did you grab the spirits?” Meiko asked. Her voice was soft, but her expression was stern.

“Excuse me?” he demanded.

“You have taken them in the past,” Akito said, trying to smooth it over.

It did not go over well. “I didn't take anything!” Nisei snarled. He stomped off, disappearing into an alleyway.

Right past the international students, who were starting to come to awareness. The quiet murmur of confusion quickly became angry and argumentative. There was no trace of Christmas spirit among them.

“How many of those ReMares did we beat?” I asked, watching a couple of kids pushing each other. A teacher got involved, but they both kicked his shins and ran off.

“Nisei got two, Jiro and I got one... Meiko and you each got one. So... Five?” Akito said.

“There was six,” Meiko said slowly.

“We didn't get the biggest one. Hathi,” I said. My shoulders slumped.

Rou frowned, pulling away from Akito to pace. Akito reached out, trying to stop him, but Rou shrugged him off. “Hathi divided itself into six. The smaller ones must have been... like spores or puppets or something. The bigger one must be the core.”

Meiko sighed and clenched her fists. “And I...” She shook her head and took off in the direction that Nisei had ran off to.

“Meiko!” I shouted and took a few steps after her, before glancing back at Akito and Rou.

“Go. I'll see what I can do to help these guys,” Akito said, pointing towards the students.

I nodded and ran after Meiko. I saw her farther down the alley and continued after. At one road crossing she paused and shouted “Nisei!” and turned down another road. I pushed myself harder, and caught up to her at the end of that road. She took a few hesitant steps as she slowed down. “I lost him.”

“Don't worry. We'll find him again,” I said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

“I'm so tired of this suspicion and not being sure of who is on whose side... I just wanted to make things right, and then I was the first to suspect him.” She rubbed her eyes. “I'm an idiot.”

“No... Who wouldn't have suspected him? He's helped us in the past, yeah, but he's also stolen from us and fought us. Even Akito suspected him.”

“He gave us all the Memokas back. Obviously, he had changed,” Meiko said.

“We don't know if Ki told him to do that,” I said. She gave me a furious glare, and I held up my hands. “I mean, you are right. Something has changed. But in the past, the times he's helped us was because we had helped him. Or because Ki told him to do something. And he shows up, looking down at me for not fighting? Like he was the first one to believe that we should protect people's memories? He's yelled at me before for assuming he's one of us. It's hard to know what to think.”

She sighed, and took a few more steps down the alley, and stomped her foot. “It's just so frustrating!”

I watched her, “I know. But... We'll see Nisei again. We can apologize then. Alright?”

“Fine...” She sighed.

“Come on, I think Akito's got a lot of people he's trying to calm down.” I said. She nodded and we headed back to the arcade.

Rou had disappeared, I'm assuming back inside to rest. Akito was trying to talk to people, but a fight broke out and he ducked out of the way, scampering back from a punch. And promptly tripping over another kid who had stuck out their leg. Akito fell on his butt, and the student laughed, and kicked him. “Damn it!” Akito exclaimed, guarding his head.

They were starting to gang up on him, circling around. “Hey!” I shouted, and shoved my way to the center of the circle. Ones that noticed me, shoved at me. I managed to keep my feet. “Up you go, Aki,” I said, grabbing his arm, and dragging him to his feet. I pushed my way back through the crowd, and pulled both him and Meiko back into the store. Akito hastily locked the front door. Some of the kids followed us and started pounding on the door.

“Well, we started a baby riot. Now what?” Akito asked.

“We find Hathi,” I said, “Before somebody gets hurt.”

 

 


	33. Forgiveness and Fear

Finding Hathi was a simple plan, but real life made things a little more complicated than that. Sharky was nearly in tatters. She hadn't been expelled from her origami, but she couldn't help us. And worse, Rou couldn't patch her up, because he was in just as bad shape. Rou was passed out in Akito's room, his breathing distressingly shallow. “He yells at me for doing too much, and now look at him,” Akito grumbled, checking on his heartbeat. “I'm going to chew out Ki the next time I see him.”

“He got into a fight back at the motorcycle shop too. I couldn't...” I trailed off. It had been my fault. I should have been able to fight then and spare his health. I had been too afraid.

“Psh,” Akito waved his hand dismissively. “Even if you had fought then, he would have transformed. I know him. He wants to fight.”

“Still...”

“I know.”

“Um, Aki Aki?” Meiko called from the other room, sounding alarmed.

“What is it? I'm busy,” Akito called back.

“I think we might need to board up the windows? Or call the police? Probably both,” Meiko said, “They've gotten metal poles from somewhere.”

“Dammit!” Aki scowled. “Meiki, can you put down the metal shutters? There's a button near the register. I'll call the cops.”

“Right,” I said, and hurried for the button. The kids were pounding on the window, and one of them whooped and threw the metal pole at the glass. The glass cracked, but the pole bounced off. The kids near the glass swore irritably at the person who threw it. I shuffled around the cashier's stand until I found the button. I pressed it, and there was a cranking noise as the metal shutters slid down in front of the storefront. The kids scrambled back, although it wasn't long before they were banging on that instead.

“This isn't good,” Meiko said, pulling a blanket over her shoulders. “What are we going to do if Hathi does this to more people? We can't fight a bunch of children!”

“I don't know,” I said, plopping down on a chair. “It's so frustrating. I was so scared about fighting, and in the end, we didn't even beat the ReMare. If we are going to anger Shika, I'd rather have it be like... with a win. And not a loss.”

She looked at me for a moment, and then came over to me and grabbed my shoulders. “Meiki.”

“Yeah?”

“It is a win. You beat the fear she put into your heart,” Meiko said, her sharp brown eyes staring me down. It took me aback. She smiled when she saw my surprised expression, and her eyes softened. “You are brave, love. Even when you're scared. None of us really thought you would stop being Year all together. Not for long.”

“I did,” I said, glancing away.

“Cause she made you think that. We know you, love.” Meiko said, and she slid my hands up to my cheeks, turning my face back to hers and kissed me. “Now. Let's do what we can for now.”

“R-right,” I said, dazed. “Let me see if I can make an elephant origami.” I grabbed the book that Rou had given to me as a present. I flipped through until I found what I wanted, and took out purple paper.

“Police are on their way. Jiro seems stable for now, but I want to watch him, in case he needs medicine,” Akito said as he came back into . “If you guys slip out through Jiro's door, you might be able to sneak past them.”

I put a final crease into the elephant, and took out my Year Memoka and wrote “Hathi”on it carefully in katakana, which ended up being closer to hashi.... but whatever. I'm sure it understood what I meant. “Right. The stupid stairs.”

“Sorry my stairs are stupid,” Akito said, crossing his arms. “Would you prefer to get mauled by babies?”

“No, thanks,” I said, shaking my head. “Meiko, are you ready?”

She nodded.

“I'll raise a distraction to help clear the way,” Akito said, pointing a thumb at the shuttered door. “So hurry, okay? I'll give you about five minutes.”

“Thanks,” I said, and Meiko and I hurried up the elevator, and then back down the stairs of the lab. As we peeked out of the door, we heard the shutters rattling up. The kids milling around were alerted and regained their assault on the door. “Hurry,” I whispered and opened the rest of the way and ran over to my bike. Meiko followed and mounted behind me. I put the purple elephant on the pair device and it gave me directions.

We drove off away from the arcade, following the route. It lead us to the radio building. I looked at Meiko. If Hathi was making people forget human decency, we could be confronting people we knew. It felt heavy. We ran in, and I slid on the marble floors in front of the radio station. It was quiet. I shoved open the doors, and inside, Hathi was sitting on an office chair, facing away from us. “HEY!” I shouted.

Hathi spun around and asked, “Oh, the butterfly found me again? Good. Did you like my army?”

“No,” I said, and grabbed my Time Driver. I raised it up and brought it down to my waist. “Henshin!" I swiped the green Memoka, and it played a Christmasy tune.

“A GIFT for you on this special night!” the belt chimed. Green armor appeared on me, with red details and a red ribbon on the cape.

“Henshin!” Meiko echoed, and stepped through her sigil, her armor appearing on her.

“I can't say I liked your army either. I'm pleased to see that there is far fewer of them this time. I look forward to destroying you.” Hathi stood up and bowed with a flourish.

“Stronger ReMares than you have tried,” Winter said, and rushed forward to hit him with her sword.

He stepped aside and grabbed the blade with his hand. It sizzled unpleasantly, but he ignored it. “You mean the High ReMares?” Hathi snorted. “Power is a shifting thing. I don't have to be the strongest to beat you where others have failed. Isn't that right, my soldiers?” Stepping out of the break room and the recording studios were our coworkers.

“Get out of the way, idiot!” Nawata-san said, shoving aside Okuda-san.

“What the hell do you think you're doing?” she snapped back

“Why in the world are there freaks in our office?” Oscar sneered.

“Hey! Get out of here, freaks!” Nawata-san said, shoving me this time. I stumbled back and raised my shield.

“What are you doing?” I asked, backing away from them.

“NO!” Winter shouted. She broke the elephant's grip and hit him again with her sword. This time it struck. She pulled back and hit him again and again. The ink splattered to the ground, and the light dissipated.

No sphere of light popped up from the mess.

Winter was breathing hard, her sword angled down at her side.

“Winter, what are we going to do about them?” I asked, surrounded by our coworkers, who were taking turns kicking my shield. I knew I could very easily power through them, but I didn't want to hurt them.

“Dammit...” Winter muttered, and she grabbed two of them by the collars and set them down on office chairs. She took tape and stuck them there. She grabbed Okuda-san by the arm and sat her down too, and taped her in place. “Behave!” she commanded, before storming to the door. The glass panel cracked and broke as she slammed the door open. She swore again before stomping out.

“Sorry guys,” I said, before retreating after Winter. I found her out by the bike. “Are you alright?” I asked.

“No, I'm not! I hate people I care about turning against me! I'm going to punch that elephant so hard his trunk comes out his ass!” she swore, and slapped the elephant origami back onto the Synchrocycle. “Let's go!” She noticed I was staring at her. “What?!”

I took her by the upper arms, and bonked the foreheads of our helmets together gently. “Calm down. This isn't like you, Winter. We'll beat him and everything will go back to normal. Alright?”

Her muscles under her armor felt tense. After a moment, she relaxed a little, and bonked my helmet back softly. “Sorry. I lost my temper.”

“It's okay. Let's find him.”

We drove off, following the new path. This one lead to Oara University. “It's been a while,” I said, looking around the quad. “That building is new, isn't it?”

“Hn. Maybe,” Winter said, not interested in reminiscing. “Hathi should be around here.”

From the clock tower there was a loud noise. “AAAAAARGH!”

“That sounds like Summer!” I said, and revved the engine, cutting across the lawn and skidding to a halt in front of the clock tower. Summer was there, crouching and panting in front of a puddle of ink. Some of the students were starting to argue and shove each other.

Summer looked up at us and wiped his transformation, becoming Nisei again. “What are you doing here?”

“After that guy,” I said, gesturing at the puddle.

“I'm sorry I accused you of taking the spirit,” Winter said, although I think it came out a lot more sternly than she meant to, because Nisei just bristled.

“Fine,” he said, before turning away.

“Wait up! We're tracking him. Do you want to come with us?” I asked. He turned and looked at us for a moment.

“No,” he said shortly and turned. He hesitated, when he saw someone kick over a trash can. “Yes... No..”

“Which is it?” I asked.

“No. There's still another one around here. It's not the main one, but,” Nisei noticed two students fighting. “Stop that!” He grabbed one of the student's arms and pulled him away from the other one. The student struggled against Nisei. “Go on ahead. I'll take care of things here.”

“We'll leave it to you,” Winter said.

“Understood.” I nodded and we put the origami elephant back on the pair device. This time it gave two addresses. One was still near here, and one was a few blocks away.

We left the closer one for Nisei, and went after the one that was a few blocks away. It led us to a park across town where there was a small Christmas party for kids. There was a massive pine tree that had been decorated with lights. I didn't like how much crying and yelling was coming from the festivities. The ground rumbled, and I could see the elephant ReMare stomping around.

“Check and see if there's another one now. I'd rather cut the wild goose chase short, and defeating them one by one doesn't seem to be working.” Winter said, stepping off of my bike. “I'll take this one. I'll meet up with you later.” She ran towards the elephant to tackle him.

I didn't like leaving her, but it made sense. “Right.” I placed the elephant again, and this time it gave me a much brighter purple line. “Gotcha.” I sped off towards it. It lead me to Etoile. I hesitated at the doorway. The last time I had been here hadn't been good. I took a deep breath, and pushed the door open. There was a ruckus of customers arguing with the waiters, and dishes breaking.

Hathi stood at the center of the chaos, grinning at me. “Welcome back, butterfly.”

“Stop this, Hathi,” I growled.

“No, I'd rather not. For the longest time Tigra has discouraged us... flashier ReMares. What does it matter if we destroy all the humans? There are always more, and your suffering memories are so delicious.”

“OK, so you're down right evil,” I said, taken aback.

“Oh, you have no idea.”

“Whatever. I'm taking you down,” I said, and charged him, shield up to push him back. He held out a hand and caught my momentum. With a heavy push, he knocked me back a few steps.

“Not that way, you aren't. Don't bore me,” he taunted.

“Fine!” I changed tactics and drew the red Memoka. Ranged attacks might work.

“Really? A gun?” He rolled his eyes. His derision made me second guess myself. I drew the blue one instead. He grinned. “Are you sure? You didn't beat me with that earlier.”

“Shut up!” I shouted, and swiped the blue Memoka across the the Time Driver. “Henshin!”

“ONI OUT!” The belt roared, and my armor changed from green to blue. I echoed the roar and charged the elephant ReMare. He grabbed my fists, struggling to keep a hold on me.

“You humans are so easily moved to fear and anger, aren't you?” he asked quietly to the side of my head where my ears were under my helmet.

It pissed me off even further. I smashed my head down into his shoulder. It broke his grip on that side, and with my hand free, I punched him in the gut.

He grunted. “See what I mean? You're weak.”

“What's wrong with being angry?” I punched him again. “You're hurting children!” I kicked him. “You're hurting my friends!” I kicked him again., and he stumbled back. “You're hurting my town!” I drew the Prism club. “Of course I'm angry!” I hit him in the face. He fell back into a table.

He stood back up slowly, and wiped his face with the back of his hand and laughed. His face had a big blue scar on it now. “Good!” He straightened up and stomped hard into the ground. Tables rattled and costumers fell back to the ground. I staggered. He took that opportunity to rush towards me. He punched me in the gut twice. I doubled over in pain. He grabbed me up and lifted me into the air. Suddenly I was soaring through the air. I broke through the grass like a torpedo through wet tissue, and hit the ground out in the gardens outside. I struggled to pick myself back up, leaning on one arm.

Hathi quickly followed me out the window, landing heavily to knock me off my balance again. I tried to get up again, but he kept waiting for me to get to a point where I was halfway up and then he'd stomp again, knocking me back down.

Oni was strong enough to go toe to toe with Hathi, but I was quickly finding that what I needed was balance. I grabbed the orange Memoka, and swiped it across my Time Driver. “Henshin!”

The belt chimed and played the Obon dance music, and orange flames lit up around me. I stood up slowly as my armor changed from blue and red to orange and black.

He tried to knock me down again, but this time I was able to take a step back, shifting my stance but staying upright. I shifted my stance again and ran at him, drawing my Prism Fans as I went. I slashed at him with both, leaving livid orange scars. He knocked aside one hand and then the other, and kicked my chest. I slid back a few feet, but didn't fall. It took me a moment to regain my breath. I clutched a hand to my chest. I definitely felt Hathi's hits harder in this form.

“This has been informative, but I have other things to do now.” Hathi shuddered and another copy ReMare sloughed off of him. “Farewell, butterfly,” he said, and started to sink into the ground.

“Yargh!” Like storm clouds parting, I got a glimpse of sky blue. Summer crashed into the disappearing ReMare, and broke his concentration. I took the opportunity to engage the fake, slashing it with my fans and spinning away to avoid the counter attack.

“Get off of me, you beast!” Hathi objected, flinging Summer away. Summer flew through the air, colliding with me. I stumbled, but I was able to catch him and push him back to his feet.

“Thanks, he was about to run off,” I said, and pat him on the shoulder.

Summer nodded, and shifted back to a fighting stance.

“Hmph,” Hathi huffed irritably, and shook off another copy. “Don't think your little pet abomination is going to help you any, butterfly. My plans haven't changed just because there's two of you.”

As soon as he said abomination, Summer tensed and launched himself at the elephant ReMare. He screeched and stamped his belt again, running through the sigil. I also moved, hitting one of the fake ReMares and then the other, getting into an intricate dance between them.

Hathi dodged out of the way of Midsummer's attacks, brushing off the few that hit him like they were nothing. He shifted and swiped low with one leg, knocking Midsummer's feet out from under him. He reached down to pick him up by the neck. Midsummer struggled against him, grabbing a the hand holding his neck. “I have no time for things like you.” Hathi sneered.

I tried to get over him to help, but the two fakes grabbed my arms as I tried to disengage with them. “Midsummer!”I shouted.

There was a roar of an engine, and Winter appeared on a bare bones motorcycle. She ramped over a curb and jumped off the bike, launching herself at Hathi. Hathi threw Midsummer aside and shifted to guard. He staggered back from the force of her attack, but regained his balance and shoved her weapon back.

“Henshin,” she said quietly, and stamped her belt again.

A second sigil appeared and lowered over her. Her armor changed to look heavier and a bit more like a knight, and her belt chimed. “Long Night! Fight!”

Midsummer got to his feet and rubbed his throat, before delivering a solid hit to one of the fake elephant's gut with his staff. It let me go, and I pulled the second one's arm, turning the ReMare's grab into a throw, flinging it at the other fake.

“I will not allow anyone else to be forced to fight against their friends, Hathi,” Long Night said sternly.

“Your desires are irrelevant to me,” Hathi spat back. “I will do as I wish. No one is stopping me anymore!”

“No,” she said, and ran at him, drawing a sword and shield of light. They were both smaller than her normal sword, but it afforded her with a bit more maneuverability. She deftly attacked the ReMare, and the force knocked him off balance.

“White out!” Her belt chimed.

“Fugitive color!” Midsummer's belt rang.

“Vanishing point!” My belt added in.

Long Night rushed forward, impaling Hathi with her sword. Midsummer and I both jump kicked the fake ReMares. All three of them dissolved into puddles. This time, a purple orb rose up out of the ink.

“So there,” Long Night said, before wiping clear her transformation. Meiko wobbled on her feet and dropped to a knee.

“Meiko!” I shouted, wiping clear my own transformation and running over to her. “Are you alright?”

“Ha... that second level transformation is rough,” Meiko said, and smiled at me sleepily. “Got him though.”

“You did,” I said fondly. “Rest, okay? I'll take you home.”

Midsummer wiped clear his own transformation. Nisei looked quite bruised himself, his eyes dark. He walked over to us and picked up the purple orb. “Here.” He held it out to us.

I took it. “Thank you.”

Nisei looked away. “My apartment is closer than the cafe. She can rest there, if you want.”

“Um... Alright,” I said. I switched her bike into side car form, and attached it to the Synchrocycle, and helped Meiko into it. I followed Nisei's bike to a nearby apartment building. The outside was an unfortunate dingy yellow. I carried Meiko to his slightly rusty door, and he let us in. As worn out and dirty as the outside was, the inside was another story. There was a small kitchen, and a single tatami room, and all of it was impeccably clean and sparse. There weren't any decoration or personal belongings, aside from a stack of books in the corner. In the kitchen, there was a single chair and a folding table, where Nisei had piled a stash of Akito's baked goods.

“I'll set up a futon,” he said, and pulled a pile of blankets out of the closet. He laid them out neatly. “Here. Sorry my apartment is a mess.”

“Seriously? This is the cleanest room I think I've ever seen,” I said, laying Meiko down on the futon.

“Thank you very much,” he said, bowing his head. “It's not much, but it's mine.”

I sat down next to Meiko, and he sat on his ankles across from me. “You're actually pretty serious about school, aren't you?” I asked, glancing over at his books.

He was quiet for a while, staring down at the tatami mat. “Yes.” He hesitated. “I like studying.”

“Let me know if you want any more books on communications or radio, because I'm pretty sure I still have some floating around my apartment,” I said. “Or I can recommend good ones.”

“Thank you. I'd like that.” He was quiet again, and I couldn't help but fidget with the blanket, smoothing it over Meiko.

“I'm going to let Aki know we're alright,” I said, and pulled out my phone to text Akito.

Nisei stood up abruptly and went over to the kitchen. “Forgive me. I should make tea,” he said impulsively, dragging out an electric kettle and a pair of small Japanese tea cups.

“Oh! Um, thank you,” I said, surprised. A few moments later, he brought over a tray with two cups and a tea kettle full of tea.

“It's not much, but...” He bowed his head a little.

“Thank you,” I took a cup and sipped it. I watched him take a sip of his own cup, and sit quietly. “Hey, can I ask you a personal question?”

He bristled and warily said, “I suppose...”

“I really don't mean this to be rude but... What made you change your mind about us?”

“What?” He tilted his head.

“Before you got really angry when I said you were part of the Mei Brigade, and helping us protect people, but today you jumped into the fight right away, even when I was reluctant... And you were helping the students at the school, too.” He didn't answer me for a long time, and I was worried that he was going to be angry with me. “You don't need to answer if you don't want to.”

“I am young,” he said abruptly. “There are a lot of old spirits, like... Ki, and some of the others... I became a ReMare almost immediately, because I was weak.” He turned his teacup around, looking at the soft blue pattern on it, distractedly. “And shortly after that, Tigra shoved me in this body because she knew she could boss me around.” He looked at me. “I played at school, until I discovered I liked it... I have friends there... It doesn't seem possible for me to have human friends, but I do...”

“We're you're friends too, you know,” I offered.

“You... You guys were confusing,” he said, waving a hand dismissively. “But... I suppose so. Now, anyway. I don't understand it. Things keep getting complicated. I... a lot has changed.”

“You're telling me,” I laughed, and he shot me an offended glare. “Sorry, sorry. I haven't slept or ate in a long time. Aside from getting knocked out for a week after using Bright, I guess.”

“And... those are normal human things,” he said slowly.

I'd almost rather have Hathi punch me in the gut again. It'd feel just as nice. “Yeah,” I said, and sighed.

He echoed the sigh and stood up and walked over to the window.

“You gave back the Memokas. And didn't try to take the Hathi spirit,” I said slowly. “Taking memories... that's a normal ReMare thing.”

He glanced back at me, and then back out the window. “I can't use them anymore.”

“Really?”

“I bumped into you when you were Bright,” he said.

I remembered how touching Tigra had burned ink away from her. “Are you...?”

“I'm not a ReMare anymore.”

“You're not? But that's great!” I stood up, taking a step towards him.

“In... some ways,” he said reluctantly.

“What do you mean?” I asked. “It's better for spirits to be spirits. You don't have to steal memories anymore.”

“I... I don't think I'm entirely a spirit either,” he said, unusually quiet. “I can't leave this body. I'm stuck.”

“You're stuck?”

“I'm stuck.”

I sat back down. “What does that even mean?”

“I don't know. I can't get out.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I think it means that I've become a human,” he said slowly.

“A human,” I repeated, stunned. He nodded. “Like... you're Togo now?”

“No!” he objected. “I'm Nisei.”

“It's still Togo's body.”

“I know that!” he snapped. He stared at his hands for a long moment, and slowly made a fist. “I don't know what it means for me if I get more of Togo's memories back.”

“I don't know. Ki and Rou shared a body for years, and they're...” I was going to say fine, but clearly neither of them were fine. Rou was sick, and Ki was corrupted by blots. “They're each their own person.”

“Rou didn't die. His spirit or whatever humans have, was still in his body,” Nisei said. “It's just me here. But I remember carrying that cake with Akito. It was before I was even alive, but I remember it.” He put his fist on his sliding glass door. “I don't know what I am. But I don't want to lose who I am.”

That resonated with me, like if he had thrown a dart and hit right on the mark of my own feelings. “Me too, Nisei...” I sighed. “I'm not sure what we can do about it though...”

“Hn...” He frowned, and was quiet for a few minutes.

“Do you want to tell the others?” I asked.

“No!” Meiko stirred and he clammed up. After a moment, he repeated softly, “No. You saw how Akito was when you said I had Togo's memory.”

Akito had not reacted well. But... he was a good person. And I had to think that he had developed some fondness for Nisei beyond just wanting to protect his brother's body. “I think... eventually he would understand. And Rou might know something that could help you.”

Nisei shook his head. “Don't. Not yet.”

“Alright. I won't. But I'm glad you told me,” I said.

He stared at me suspiciously “No! I told you!” He paced back and forth in front of the glass door. “I knew I shouldn't have said anything! Idiot, idiot, idiot!” He glared at me and advanced angrily towards me. “If you say anything, I'll...”

I held my hands out to pacify him. “Shhh, calm down. I'm not going to tell them. That's not why I'm glad.”

He paused. “You're not?”

“No. You trusted me with something that was bothering you. And... our problems are different, but I can definitely relate. I was reminded lately that it's okay to rely on the people that you trust and love. Even if they can't do anything to help but listen.” I looked down at Meiko fondly, and then grinned up at him. “I'm glad we can be friends now.”

Nisei turned bright red, slammed the sliding door open, and escaped to the balcony, slamming the door shut behind him. I stared after him in shock for a moment, then stifled a laugh behind my hand.

“What was that all about?” Meiko asked sleepily.

“I've gone and embarrassed Nisei with my emotions of friendship,” I said, amused.

“Friendship is not an emotion!” He shouted from outside.

“Isn't it cold out there?” I asked.

“No!” He shouted back, and stood out there stubbornly for a few more minutes.

“How are you feeling, Meiko?” I asked, deciding to ignore his temper tantrum.

“Tired. Hungry,” she said, yawning and sitting up slowly. “Where are we?”

“Nisei's apartment,” I answered.

“He has an apartment?” Meiko asked, glancing around. “It seems like a place he'd have.”

Nisei cracked open the door. “What's that supposed to mean?”

“I just figured you for the neat and tidy type.”

He slipped back into the room, and shut the door behind him. He skulked over to the kitchen and got another cup and some of the baked goods he had stored. “Have some tea and snacks,” he commanded, filling her cup and pushing it towards her.

“Excuse me, don't mind if I do,” Meiko said. She took a sip of tea, and then opened the package of a walnut roll. “Thank you, Nisei.”

He bowed sharply. “It's nothing.”

“I do want to apologize again, Nisei,” she said, bringing her legs underneath her so that she was sitting on her ankles. He immediately dropped to his own knees, and bowed again.

“It's not necessary!”

“It is. I am tired of not being sure who are friends and who are enemies. I want to be friends. It's why I invited you to our Christmas party. But I didn't act like a very good friend. I accused you of taking things, and when I did apologize, I was angry about something else, so it came off rudely.” She bowed to him. “I'm sorry.”

Nisei gave her a deer in a headlight stare, and bowed back impulsively. “I forgive you,” he said, and then clenched the fabric of his dress pants. “I... have taken things in the past. I do not blame you for suspecting me. I... also was thinking of something else, so it came off rudely. I'm sorry.” He bowed again.

“I forgive you,” Meiko said simply, and bowed her head again, which set Nisei off into a spree of three or four quick bows in succession. Meiko replied in kind, and I wasn't entirely sure if she was genuinely trying to be polite and sorry, or if she was teasing him and seeing how long he'd go.

“Ah, the emotion of friendship,” I teased.

“Shut up!” Nisei snapped, but it broke off whatever loop of bowing he had gotten stuck in. Meiko laughed and took a bite of her bread.

“Merry Christmas, Nisei,” I said, and clapped him on the shoulder. “Welcome to the Mei Brigade.”

 

 


	34. The Stars Go Out

A week went by, and I found myself watching some of the New Year's specials on TV late at night on New Year's Eve. The Mei Brigade had plans to go to the temple tomorrow morning, but for now, they were resting. Or at least that's what I had thought. A knock on the door interrupted my night. I glanced at the door. It was at least 10:30. The knocking came more persistently. I got up and cracked open the door and Rou was there. "Hey. What's up?" I asked, letting him in.

"Just figured you'd still be awake. Akito is still cleaning and i wanted to get out," Rou said. He glanced at the TV set. "How invested are you in watching that?"

I shrugged. "Not really. Just killing time. I've got a lot of it now."

"Heh," Rou smiled a little. "I guess you do. Want to go for a ride?"

"Sure. Let's go." I said, grabbing my jacket, and followed him out of the apartment.

I turned my bike back into the Synchrocycle and he whistled appreciatively. "I always forget what a nice bike that is," Rou said. "The Harvester and the Avalanche are great too, but yours is definitely inspired."

"Right, the person who made them is pretty clever, isn't he?" I said, laying the flattery on thick, teasing him a little for appreciating his own work. To tell the truth, they were really amazing.

"Sure," Rou said. "A regular genius."

"A wizard with machines," I said.

"And also very handsome," he added. "And I heard he wants to race."

"I suppose I could oblige him. Where to?" I asked, stretching my arms over my head, and then side to side.

"Hm, let's say the temple?" Rou said.

"You got it!" I climbed onto the Synchrocycle and grabbed my helmet. I watched him as he climbed aboard his own bike. "Is your bike like ours too? Does it have a name?" I asked.

He looked surprised at me for a second and grinned, "Of course. It's kind of a prototype, so it doesn't change back and forth, but I definitely made it and added some... features. It's called Zephyr."

"Bless you," I said.

"No, it means wind. Specifically the wind in spring," Rou explained.

"Ohhh. Too bad you're gonna lose," I said, and revved my engine. I took off out of the parking lot. I heard a strangled yelp and a lot of swearing as he started his bike and chased after me. I laughed as I turned the corner. I continued on, the cold night air stinging my skin.

And suddenly at an intersection, his bike appeared in front of me, nearly throwing me off balance. Thankfully, the Synchrocycle could adjust, and I followed the glowing red lights of his motorcycle. I chased him up the mountain, keeping an eye out for any opening to get around me. He was annoyingly careful to get in my way every time I thought about passing him up.

At one straight stretch of the mountain road I was able to get around him. I started pulling ahead for a while, but the second I had to slow down to pull a tight curve, he slipped past me again.

Rou pulled into the parking lot for the temple and I followed, parking near him. He pulled his helmet off and tossed his hair, and he looked beautiful in the starlight. He caught me staring and he grinned. "Not bad. You've gotten pretty good. But you're gonna have to wake up earlier if you want to beat me."

"If I woke up any earlier, I think I'd cause some sort of time paradox, but sure," I said. I removed my own helmet and raised an eyebrow at him.

"Ah, sorry. I didn't think about what-" Rou started.

"It's alright.” I wasn't particularly mad about him saying it. Even I caught myself saying things about eating or sleeping. Habits were hard to break. “So. We're at the temple about ten hours earlier than we planned. What's up?" I asked.

"Actually... There's a place up here that I thought would be really nice to see the sunrise at..." he trailed off.

"Oh?" I raised an eyebrow. That sounded about as suspicious as it got. It wasn't like him to go for romantic gestures. "Alright. Lead the way, Rou."

He nodded and took off towards the forest. I followed him. It was dark, but the moon was full and the stars were bright. He stopped at a clearing that had a spectacular view of the city below. "Here." There was a large rock in the center of the clearing, which was wrapped with thick ropes and hanging paper charm. It had to be a holy spot of the nearby temple.

"This place looks kind of familiar," I said, glancing around. "This is where I became Year, isn't it? In your memory?" Sen's memory of me half transforming lurked in my mind. I hadn't told anyone about it. I don't know why, but I felt reluctant to even think about it. Like something important would break like a soap bubble if I touched it.

"I... It's a new year. I thought it might be fitting to start it where all of this started."

"It is." I bowed slightly to the rock, and turned to glance out at the city. "It's so beautiful up here." The lights of the city sparkled. In the distance the ocean was dark and endless

"It is." he sat down on a fallen log, and I joined him. "Here," he said. He tossed me a can of hot coffee, and opened one himself. I held it in my hands to warm them for a moment before opening it and drinking it.

"Thanks."

After a while he said, "I also brought you this.” He handed me a purple Memoka. "I just finished it up."

"Thanks," I said, rubbing it with my thumb. "I think."

"That's all of them." Rou said quietly.

"Yeah.... It's been a wild ride, hasn't it?" I said.

A lot of things had happened. When I first met him, this time at least, Rou had seemed out of his mind, going on about monsters and memories. But then those very monsters had shown up, and Meiko had lost her memories of our friendship. I had jumped into action without thinking. For a while, I worried that I had stolen Rou's Time Driver, when actually it had been mine all along. Sharky and I had fought and become friends. I had argued with Akito, until he had regained his inspiration and fought along side me. Meiko had regained her memories and became Winter. And my girlfriend.

We met Nisei, whose allegiances were dubious at first, but Akito had stubbornly protected him because he looked like his little brother. We got caught up in a rivalry between Minotaur and Tigra. We beat Minotaur, with Nisei's help. And Rou had his constant companion ripped from his body and turned against us. I stopped being able to eat and sleep.

We beat Tigra, but had found out that Akito's father was in league with Shika, a deer ReMare who had ripped my driver off a few years ago and made me forget that I had become Year almost ten years ago. And she had told me that if I transformed again, she'd destroy everything. But... I couldn't not protect the people I cared about.

I glanced at Rou. He looked tired, but he looked a lot more alive here, in the fresh mountain air, after racing through the town, than he had in months. "You holding up alright?" I asked.

He sighed and finished off the can of coffee. "I'm fine. Akito's been doing his best to keep me from falling apart too much. It's frustrating though. I finally get to the point where I can fight, but I'm still... very weak." he clenched his fist and the can crumpled in his grip.

"Because fighting knocks you out like that? Because it did the same to me, at first," I said, and then amended it, "And recently, I guess. Bright knocked me on my ass."

"That's... part of it. But I really wasn't much use against that elephant." His eyes were on the purple Memoka in my hand.

"There are different kinds of strength. Hathi just happened to be physically strong and very hard to hurt. Even Oni and Winter were barely denting it.” I twirled the Memoka, before putting it with the others. “Meiko's had the same concerns lately.”

“What? But she just managed to power up,” Rou said, trying not to sound bitter about it and failing.

“You sound like Akito now.” I grinned at the sour face Rou pulled. “I'm serious though. Between Maneki, Summer, and Ki, she's had a hard time even getting close to any of them, since they're all quite quick. And you're the only one who can really keep up with Ki.”

“Ki...” He sighed. “I wonder if that's true. It feels like he's left me in the dust. All I've got in this town is the Mei Brigade and him. And... You guys don't even remember a lot about us.”

“I'm sorry,” I said. “We've kinda been slow about getting those back, huh?”

“It's fine. I don't know if we're ready to face Shika yet. It's just weird. I've been going to the same bike shop since I was a little kid, just to look and help out, but now I have to argue with the guy like he wasn't the one to teach me about bikes. And... I dunno. Teachers and people I knew just sort of... pass me by like I'm a stranger.” Rou leaned back on his hands. “It makes me angry sometimes. I want to shake them and say look at me! But... Then I get into fights.”

“Like with Katsumi-san,” I said, unthinking.

“Who?” Rou said.

“Your... She's your mom,” I said. I had forgotten that he didn't remember anymore.

“I... I don't remember my mom,” he said, eyes wide. He stood up, looking like he was going to start a fight with the whole world. “Meiki. Who took it?”

“Um... Remember the fight with Tigra?” He nodded. “And Ki showed up in human form?” He shook his head no slowly, clenching his fists. “He was kind of hanging on you for a moment before the fighting started.”

“That stupid shitty fox!” Rou shouted at the city below.

“Calm down,” I said, pulling his arm to try and get him to sit back down. He yanked his arm away from me.

“I'm not going to calm down! I can't remember my mom because of him!” Rou shouted.

“I think he did it because he thought fighting with her stressed you out,” I said, grabbing his arm again. This time Rou froze. “It's stupid and shitty, yes. And we'll kick his ass for it. But he also gave your mom the Bright Memoka to give to me.” I wasn't going to mention that his mom also seemed surprised when I suggested that Rou and she were always fighting. “I think he was trying to help, even if it was in a stupid shitty ReMare sort of way.”

“Idiot,” Rou grumbled. I wasn't sure if he meant me or Ki, but he allowed me to guide him back down to the ground.

We were quiet for a while, looking down at the city.

It took me a long time to notice it, but there were large stretches of the town which were as dark as the endless ocean. More than I had thought. "There's a lot of dark spots," I said, concerned. “I thought... With us beating another high ReMare, there wouldn't be so many.”

Rou was quiet as he stared out at the city. “It's hard for me to tell,” he said. “But yeah. I can kind of see them.”

“In fact... It kind of looks like they're going out...” I said, standing up in alarm. Rou stood up next to me. Lights blinked out near the edges and the darkness crept in.

“Are we sure people aren't just turning off their lights?” Rou asked. “There could be a power outage.”

“I don't think so,” I said, shaking my head. Just looking at the dark spots made my heart race and my gut clench. I didn't think they were good. “They give off the same feeling as that other mountain.” And suddenly, I was on the other mountain, near the source of the river. Sen, the silver crane, was standing guard in the water. Patches of ink were everywhere. A white snake spirit was coiled from a tree, staring at her.

“Sen, we need to do this. If we don't, we'll all die,” the snake said.

“Think of another way. This route also leads to death,” Sen replied.

“Meiki? Mei?!” Rou's shouting brought me out of it, and I was back on the mountain with him. I shook my head and looked at him. “Are you alright? You spaced out. Did you see something?”

“Something about a snake...” I said, frowning. “I don't know if it was important. But... We need to get down there. We need to stop whatever is -”

“I don't think you'll be able to,” came a familiar voice. I spun around. Ki was sitting on top of the giant rock. “Not the way you are now.”

“You!” Rou's hand was already on his driver.

“Me!” Ki said, in mock surprise.

“You made me forget my mother!” Rou shouted.

“Ah, you figured that out? Sorry. I can't help but be a bit sticky fingered right now,” Ki said, holding up an inky hand.

“What are you doing, Ki?” I asked, getting out my own driver.

“I'm a distraction. Shika's not thrilled you broke her little rules, and I'd rather the two of you don't get caught up in fighting her right now,” he said, shrugging. “At least... Not yet.”

“You're protecting her!” Rou accused.

“If that's what you want to tell yourself Rou. You know me better than that,” Ki said, and hopped down. “And don't worry about your little friends. Nisei is looking out for them.”

“But he's-” I stopped, because that wasn't my story to tell.

“Also in danger? Yes.” Ki stretched. “But he can distract them from the worst of it. Are you going to transform or not? I thought you'd jump at the chance to fight me.”

I glanced back. “The lights are still disappearing, Rou.”

“The town is in danger,” Rou agreed, hesitating.

“You can fix that later. You wanted your chance to fight me. Then fight me!” Ki hit his chest with one hand, glaring at Rou.

Rou frowned at him, and then stamped his driver. “Henshin.” His sigil appeared, and he walked through it. His belt made his transformation announcement, and without removing his eyes from Ki, he said, “Meiki, you should go. Help them if you can.”

“I'm not leaving you, Spring,” I said.

“Wasn't going to let you, Meiki,” Ki said. “But excellent choice.”

“Shut up,” I said, and swiped the new purple Memoka. “Henshin!” Purple light wrapped around me like a roll of silk, and slipped away. An old koto song played from the belt, and my armor appeared, a rich purple, with red trim. The cape had a prince and a princess on the back. They looked like dolls from Girl's day.

“YOUR MAGESTY, HIME-SAMA, Fight!” The belt chimed.

“Oh, good.” Ki grinned. “I was worried I'd have to hold back.”

“Hey! You're fighting me!” Spring shouted, and in a rush that was hard to see, he ran at Ki. The fox ReMare nodded and ran to meet him. They clashed, and disappeared, only to clash again. Suddenly Ki was in front of me, and he lashed out at me too. I took the hit, I was too slow to do otherwise. I hopped back to my feet, and it seemed like he had never left his fight with Spring.

And then he was back in front of me again. This time I was able to throw my guard up fast enough, and blocked his hit. I reached forward to punch him, but stumbled when my hand met nothing but air. He was gone again.

“Prism Charge, Complete!” The belt chimed, and I sighed in relief. I don't know what Ki was so excited about. He was clearly a lot faster than both of us. I drew the Memoka from the slot and it chimed “Prism Brush! Go, Go Go!”

“A... brush?” I said, confused. “How's that supposed to help me?” Ki laughed wildly at my confusion, and I gripped it tighter. I'd just have to find out. I slashed the air with it experimentally, and suddenly everything... shifted.

And I was staring into the multifaceted eyes of my own helmet. It was disorienting, but I turned around and stood next to myself. I got the impression that I was in both places at once. I slashed again at the air with the brush, both of me. And two more doubles appeared. It was starting to be nauseating, but all four of me could fight. Two of me rushed in to help Spring. “Need a hand, or four?” I asked, one of my doubles catching Spring by the shoulders and the knocking aside Ki. A different copy knocked into Ki and sent him tumbling to the ground. The last copy put a boot on his back. The whole sequence of attack felt like an accident, like it just barely managed to work. Still, it had worked, and I wasn't about to question it. “Hold still a second,” I told Ki.

“I was fine,” Spring shrugged off my hands.

“Well, I wasn't,” I said. “Different strengths. He had enough time to hit me too, and I'm not fast enough to do anything about it. Let's do this as a team. You know him better than I. Do you have a plan?”

That made Spring hesitate. He put a hand up to his chin and looked down, deep in thought.

Ki disappeared from under my foot, slipping into the Under. “Shit!” I said, chorusing with myself.

“Can your doubles transform?” Spring asked, looking up to look one of me in the eyes.

“I can try,” I said, “But he's already-”

“He'll be back. Follow me,” Spring said, “We still need to get back to the city.”

“Right!” I agreed, and followed him back down the path. I felt a little silly, with four of me following him. It reminded me of a bunch of ducklings following their mother, even though we're both the same size.

We got back to the temple and Spring halted. I bumped into him, as did my doubles. He stumbled forward and glared back at me. “Sorry,” I said, ducking my head in unison with my copies.

“He's here,” Spring said.

A pink knife shot down at Spring. Spring stepped out of the way deftly and it embedded into the ground. Ki stood on top of the temple roof. “What gave it away?”

“I'm not stupid, Ki,” Spring said. “Hime, are you ready?”

I nodded, and the three copies each raised up a Memoka.

"Henshin!" All three of the copies of me called out simultaneously. They all swiped their Time Drivers and light swirled around them. One was surrounded by brown bars of light, another with pink petals. And the last was surrounded with glittering gold. At the same time, the Time Drivers called out for Golden, 1111 and Sakura. It was noisy, and glorious at the same time.

I didn't have much time with Sakura, so Sakura immediately threw a spray of throwing stars at Ki, chasing him down off of the roof. When he landed, Spring was there in front of him. "We're not done here, Ki." he said.

"Of course not, Spring. Let's dance." The fox grinned and produced two small knives, immediately launching an attack. Spring summoned his wrist blades and blocked the attacks, keeping pace. Golden jumped into the fray, but Ki dodged handily. Golden turned and growled, claws of gold out and ready. Sakura launched an offensive, throwing knives and getting a few punches in, and Ki slowed down. Having two quick people to fight at once made it harder for him to dodge. Golden slashed at him, raking the sleeves of his kimono. Ki hissed, and threw a knife at Golden. Pain blossomed in my shoulder. One of my shoulders? It was hard to tell who was hurt. Spring got in a solid punch on Ki. His blade cut into him, sending him falling back. Hime kicked him in the back, and he staggered forward, regaining his balance.

1111 watched, getting a sense for the battle's rhythm. Sakura timed out, but instead of dropping the transformation, that form just disappeared in a sparkle of purple light. 1111 took this opportunity to join in, picking up right where Sakura left off, catching attacks with a fast paced rhythm. Ki fended it off, and zipped off to stab Golden through a few times. It hurt, it hurt a lot. And Golden disappeared too, in purple light. It still hurt, but the pain started to feel a bit more distant, and more focused on Hime. I didn't like that. I charged him, but Hime wasn't fast enough. Ki slashed at Hime, and I dropped to a knee. He kept a knife trained on me, and looked over at 1111 and Spring.

"Hime!" Spring shouted, and charged up to Ki. Ki disappeared and reappeared behind 1111. Because I could see him as Hime, it didn't surprise 1111. 1111 spun around and hit him with my batons, but Ki disappeared again and swept the feet out from under 1111, breaking my rhythm, and stabbed 1111 too. The brown armored copy disappeared into purple light.

Spring helped Hime up. "You alright?"

"Just peachy," I grumbled. I reached out with the Prism Brush and slashed the air with it, hoping to make another copy so I could still keep up. The light on the brush sparked and failed.

"Prism Charge, depleted!" My belt announced.

"Damn it! Tell me that sooner!" I shouted at it, and shoved the Memoka back into the belt slot. I didn't even know that was a thing that could happen with the Prism weapons, but it seemed that the brush only had a certain amount of copies it could make before it was rendered useless. And Hime was not particularly strong or fast or defensive enough to fight on it's own. Like Witch, it was more of a magical attacker.

"Stay alive, alright?" Spring said, and disappeared. Now the fight was too fast for me to follow. Spring had tapped his reserves of strength and speed and was commanding Ki's full attention. I grabbed another Memoka, thinking that transforming might be my best option.

I swiped it across the belt, and yellow stars appeared around me, changing my armor from purple and red to different shades of yellow. The belt announced my form change, and I ran to join Spring.

"Enough!" Ki shouted, jumping up to the top of a stone lantern to get out of our range. He was starting to look a little roughed up, but he didn't seem the least bit tired. He was taking damage, but he wasn't out of energy. Spring on the other hand was breathing hard and shuddering. "I've wasted enough of your ti-"

"SHUT UP!" Spring roared. "Don't think you can just run off again!" He stamped his belt again, and a sigil appeared over the top of him. "Henshin!" he shouted.

Ki looked alarmed. "NO!" Ki tackled Spring. They both went flying back, crashing into a tree. The sigil lowered and glitched out when Spring was not underneath it. "Your body can't handle that, you idiot!" Ki shouted, pinning Spring to the ground. "You do that, and you die!"

“STOP! You're the stupid idiot trying to run away again! We want to help you! I want to help you!" Spring struggled under Ki's weight. It proved a fruitless effort, and he collapsed, his chest heaving. "What the hell do you care? I'm dying anyway," Spring spat, grabbing at Ki's leg, creating dips in the ink with the force of his grip. "I'm dying and you're a monster! Is this what you wanted?"

"For once, I am strong. For once, I can fight." Ki looked down at him, gathering his feelings. He no longer seemed panicked, instead he seemed cold and distant. He stood up slowly. "Maybe it is?” He nodded to himself. “Yes. I think it is. So? What are you going to do now? Give up? You're dying anyway. Go ahead. Throw all your power away. Throw your life away. Go out in a blaze of glory. You won't beat me. But you'll look so brave, won't you?”

Spring stared up at him, not speaking.

“Or you can live another day. You can spare your friends some heartache. They're going to need you, you know,” Ki said softly, staring down at Spring.

“Tch,” Spring said, and stood up slowly. “If you want to run away again, go.”

“Spring, think about what you're doing,” I said, afraid that Ki would be right about the double transformation. I wanted to defeat Ki. I wanted Rou to have that weight lifted from him. I wanted to have our ally back. I wanted to not have to guess who was on our side anymore.

I wanted to keep my friend safe.

“I kn ow what I'm doing, Rain,” Spring said coldly. “Go ahead. Run. It's what you do best.”

"If that's what you wish," Ki said, and stepped back, hopping back to the top of the temple. "I'll leave."

“Good riddance,” Spring said.

I glanced at Spring, and back at Ki. Swearing quietly, I jumped after the fox ReMare, and barely was able grab onto the back of his kimono. It was like grabbing a fist full of slightly solid ink, and it was unsettling, but it got him to stop. “You're both being rude. Stop it. You know neither of you really mean that.”

Ki glanced back at me, eyes narrowed. "You don't-" he was cut off by a bladed foot to the face, as Spring landed a jump kick. Spring hopped back, his shoulders slumped, his breathing hard. Ki lifted himself up by an elbow, touching the gash on his cheek with one hand. He stared at Spring in surprise.

"You can run. I didn't say I wouldn't follow you. I am serious. I will go all out. I expect you to do the same," Spring said, the edge to his voice sharper than a knife. "Henshin." he stamped the Memoka again.

"But he said-" I tried to reach him, to stop him, because despite everything, I believed Ki when he said it would kill Spring. But my feet were stuck in purple webs on the ground. I struggled against it, but I couldn't budge. Ki was also caught up in the web.

"Sorry," Spring said, and sat Arachne down on the ground. She scuttled away from him, perching onto a stone statue. The light sigil appeared above Spring, and lowered down over him, his belt playing fast paced music. His armor changed, becoming more streamlined and sharper edged.

"SPRING FEVER! SPRING UP AND GROW!" The belt announced. Spring Fever clenched his fist.

'No..." Ki said, eyes wide.

"Yes. I'm not going to lose this time, Ki," Spring Fever said, and in a blur of purple and pink and glittering gold, he rushed Ki. Ki blocked, the best he could. It was an explosion of colors as I could barely see what was going on. Spring Fever kicked Ki again, and it knocked him back, breaking Arachne's spell on him. I still couldn't move.

"Arachne! Let me go!" I shouted at her, and she waved a foot lazily at me and roundly ignored my request. "Stupid spider!" I shouted, and I swore I could hear her laughing.

Ki flipped and landed on his feet neatly, but now he was breathing hard. The light around Spring Fever glitched and for a second it looked like it was going to knock him back to Spring, but he yelled, and gathered himself together, and launched at Ki again. It hurt to hear it. I could tell whatever he was doing, Spring Fever was in pain. "I won't give up on you so easily, Ki! I won't leave you like this!"

"Idiot! What do you think you're doing?" Ki said, slashing at him with his knife. Spring Fever dodged it like a toddler was swinging it. "You're going to die and I still have things I need to do! I can't go back!"

"You.... You were always terrified of becoming what you are now, and I won't let you continue. You don't want this!" Spring Fever shouted. "I know you!"

"That was before I knew what it was really like. I am fine like this!" Ki shot back. "I need more time!"

"We don't have time! The town is disappearing!" Spring Fever jumped up into the air, and his belt announced "Inspiration Font!"

Ki yelled and also jumped into the air. They crashed together in an explosion of pink light that washed over the entire temple. It broke through Arachne's spell, and I stumbled free, my own transformation disappearing.

When the light cleared, both of them were laying on the roof of the temple. Rou had been knocked out of his transformation and he looked bruised and bloodied. Ki's chest was heaving, and ink was slowly melting off. "Idiot," Rou said, but there was no bite to it. In fact, there was distressingly little energy to it at all.

"That's my line," Ki said weakly.

"I've missed you," Rou said, and broke into a strangled cough. Ki laughed, but he too was cut off by coughing.

"You've got a funny way of showing it," I said, walking over to them. He didn't seem in good shape, but at least he was still conscious. And in good enough humor to tease Ki. "Rou, are you okay?" I asked.

"Haaa.... no. He was right," Rou said, and clutched his chest in pain. “I think...”

"Don't just say it that calmly you idiot!" My eyes filled with tears. "What do I do? Rou!" I demanded, reaching out to lift him up a little. I cradled his head on my lap. "I'm not not a doctor."

"Shh," Rou said, and glanced over at Ki. The ink disappeared, and a bright pink globe of light floated above the stain on the ground. "Ki, would you come back to me? I... I know I'm weak... and I can't do a lot but... If you don't want to... We can make you an origami body or..." he winced and clutched his chest, "Or... It's up to you." His hand dropped to where the lifeless blot stained the ground.

"Rou, don't... Don't go," I pleaded, terrified that he was going to die, that Ki would choose to go back to being a ReMare, that he'd choose not to protect Rou this time. That Rou would die before he could chose. "Ki..." Rou's eyes closed, and his breathing was dangerously slow.

The light shimmered for a moment, and dipped down and touched Rou's hand. It sparked and sunk into Rou's hand, and light shimmered over Rou. His skin was luminescent, looking healthy and alive. His hair changed back from black to pink, and... he opened his eyes. His skin stopped shining, and he still looked quite battered.

"Rou... Ki...? Are you both alright?" I asked, petting his hair and his face as I held him in my arms.

Rou looked confused for a moment, and held up his hand as if not entirely sure he was real. Apparently satisfied, he looked up to me and smiled. "Yeah. I... We are," he said. "Thank you."

"Why are you thanking me?" I demanded, rubbing tears away from my eyes. "I'm so mad at you right now. You knew how dangerous that was and you didn't even let me help you!"

“I know, I'm sorry, too. But if it wasn't for you, I don't think I would have been able to do that. And..." he hesitated, but his eyes flashed pink, "I also wish to apologize, personally. My... schemes might not have helped as much as I thought they were. Things... also might get very complicated for you now, and I apologize for that as well.” The pink light faded from his eyes.

“Whatever... I'm just glad both of you are alive,” I said.

“Me too,” Rou laughed, and sat up. “I'm guessing I can't ask you not to tell the others how stupid that was.”

“No, I don't think so,” I said wryly. I stood up and reached out for his hand to help him up. As he looked at my hand, I noticed that my skin seemed to have a slightly shimmery tone to it, like I had gotten into some pearly makeup. Rou glanced up at me, and studied my puzzled expression.

“Thought not,” he said, and grabbed my hand and pulled himself up. “We better get to town. Ki thinks the attack is likely already over, which he apologizes for, but we need to see what's... left.”

I nodded, and tucked my hand back into my jacket. I'd worry about that later.

 


	35. Shattered Light

We drove down mountain. I stopped at the side of the road at a point that overlooked the city. The bright areas of the town looked like lonely islands in a dark sea of night. “Where do we go first?” I asked. “We might have to move carefully. It looks like a lot of roads are... not in the light.”

“Meiko's apartment is closest. We can go there on the way to the cafe.” Rou said.

“She's at her parents, though. I can text her and see if she can meet up with us at the cafe. We should check on Nisei too,” I said, already texting her. “His apartment is not far either.”

“Right,” Rou said, hesitating for a moment before recognition dawned on his face. “Nisei isn't a ReMare anymore.”

“Mm, I burned it out of him when I was Bright," I said. “Did Ki tell you?”

“It's more like we both just know... But that's...” Rou started.

“Complicated. Nisei doesn't want the others to know,” I finished.

“Really? I'm surprised he didn't just tell us. Ki is too. He thought we'd be happy, and we are, right?” Rou asked. “I am, anyway.”

“So am I,” I said. “Akito might not be. Nisei said he's stuck in the body.”

“Hm.”

My phone buzzed. “There's Meiko.”

Meiko texted me back. “It's been quiet here. But if you need me, I'll be there.”

I sent her a text back. “It might be dangerous. Be careful.” I wrote, and added a worried emoji and a heart. She sent me back a heart too, and I smiled. I looked back at Rou. “We don't have a lot of time to get into it right now. He doesn't really understand what he is right now, and that scares him. You can try talking to him if you want,” I said. “But for now, we need to go.”

“Right,” Rou said, and we continued down the mountain. At the base of the mountain, the sky was starting to turn slightly brighter, but we ran into a dark patch. I shivered as we entered the dull area. All of the color was gone, even though I knew I had been here not a few hours ago, racing and full of joy and mischief, I now felt incredibly unwanted. Like there was no way I should be here.

It didn't help that there was a welcoming squad of hundreds of blots.

I pulled up my bike and Rou stopped next to me. I glanced at him, and he nodded. Without getting off of our bikes, we raised our Drivers into the air and said "Henshin!" I placed mine on my waist and swiped it with the Hime Memoka.

It chimed and announced my transformation, and purple light wrapped around me like silk. At the same time, Rou stamped his belt a second time, and went straight for Spring Fever.

I struck the air with the Prism brush a few times, and made three copies. Each of them had their own Synchrocycle. With those three, I transformed into New, Year, and Silver. "Let's go!" I said, echoing myself.

Spring Fever nodded, and we charged into the ink field. There were so many blots, but not many of them had features or lights. They seemed a little lost, if anything. We plowed through them like they were snow and we were on fire. Spring Fever and Year went first, Year slicing through them with my Prism sword. My armor shimmering with rainbow undertones. I noticed it more, watching from Hime's perspective. Spring Fever was using all the tricks his bike had, ramping into groups of blots, and using boosters built into the sides of the bike to melt them with pink light.

New hung back towards the middle, shooting at Blots that dared to sneak up to the sides and behind us. I took out a lot of the Blots as New. With it being New Year's Day, the energy coursing through New's form was palpable.

As Hime, and the only one of me with the real Synchrocycle and no offensive weapon, I took a page out of Rou's book and pressed the button on the Pair Device to activate the bike's weaponry, and blasted blots into the asphalt as we drove.

Silver took on the rear. I used my Prism ax and heavy defenses to crash into ReMares that chased after us.

We were doing great, and that in itself felt foreboding. Every hit, every blast of light, felt incredibly conspicuous in the weird twilight that stole the light from this area. Every blot we destroyed felt like a sacrifice instead of a victory. Like we were calling something terrible with each victim.

We broke through the edge of the dark patch, and there was color again. The sky in the distance was orange, and there was sound of crows whooping as they tore into garbage, and cars rumbling down the street as if there was nothing wrong. I wiped clear my Hime transformation, and the three copies disappeared into purple light. Spring Fever cleared his transformation too. I waved over to Rou to get him to follow me, and I led the way to Nisei's old crumbly apartment building. I found his door and knocked hard.

After a few moments, he opened the door, wearing a wrinkled dress shirt and black dress pants. "Did you sleep in that?" I asked surprised.

"... What else am I supposed to sleep in? Why are you knocking on my door at four in the morning to ask me that?" he demanded, and then shut the door in my face without waiting for my answer.

Rou rolled his eyes at me and pounded on his door again. Nisei opened the door again, glaring angrily. He was met with glowing pink eyes. “Shika's moving. Town's a mess. I thought you were running interference.”

“You,” Nisei accused.

“Me,” Ki nodded, his lips quirking up in a slight smile. “We're regrouping and making a battle plan. Are you coming?"

Nisei's face was difficult to read for a moment. "I did not think you would come back. It was not in your plan."

"Rou is convincing." Ki shrugged. "And plans change. You did not distract the others.” It could have been an accusation, but he stated it like fact.

“I am done taking orders from ReMares,” Nisei scowled and balled his fists.

“Right. Can we count on you for this?"

"If you must," Nisei sighed, and stepped out of the door.

"Good morning, Nisei-kun. Sorry for waking you," I said, rubbing the back of my head.

"Good morning," Nisei said with a sharp bow, his manners overriding whatever annoyance he had with my stupid wake up call.

We walked out to the bikes, and we were quickly on the road again. We took a detour around another patch of darkness, adding a few minutes onto our travel time to the arcade where Akito's shop was. When we finally pulled up, the arcade was quiet. It made my skin crawl.

"There are ReMares around," Nisei said. "Nothing strong. They might just be blots, but..."

"They're everywhere, Nisei," Rou said, his eyes back to normal black. Nisei glanced at him, curious and... it seemed like he was almost envious. "We must have burned through a hundred of them on the way in."

"I see," Nisei said.

"Come on. It looks like Meiko is already here," I said, nodding at her bicycle. She must have taken her Pair Device in with her, which seemed like a good idea. It didn't feel right leaving it out here. Rou used his key on the side door, and led us up the awful stairs. Akito and Meiko were both at the big table in the middle of the room, talking intently over coffee. "Happy New Year. We've got trouble," I said, as I followed Rou into the room.

"Happy New Year, indeed," Akito said. "I've had to fight three blots in my own house. What's going-" he stopped mid-sentence when he saw Rou. "Your hair!"

Rou stopped and ran a hand through it, "Oh, is it pink again?" he asked, "I haven't seen it yet."

"Yes it's pink! What the hell happened, Jiro?"

"Meiki and I went up to the shrine, because I figured she would still be up... And we were talking, but then it looked like the lights in the city were being blotted out, so we were going to come down here right away," Rou explained. "But then Ki decided to stop us, because he was worried we'd get caught up in it."

"You two fought him alone?" Meiko asked, looking alarmed.

Rou glanced at me and I shrugged, "I got a trick or two from Hathi," I said, twirling the purple Memoka before putting it back in my vest pocket. "But most of the credit goes to Rou. He powered up and... well, planned the battle well." I said, not actually tattling on him like I had threatened.

Ki, however, had different plans. Rou's eyes flashed pink, and he crossed his arms. "Which was stupid and dangerous, and Rou could have died.”

“Is that so," Akito said, raising an eyebrow.

"It's not important. We're both fine now," Rou said impatiently, his eyes back to black. "You remember that weird Under area you went into to get Sen?"

"Oh yeah, that was creepy as heck," Akito said, shivering.

“It's all over the place now,” Rou said, his expression grim.

"I ran into a small patch of it on the way," Meiko added, "It's very unsettling. And there were tons of blots."

"Are you alright?" I asked her.

She nodded and smiled at me. "I am very strong, you know."

"KIIIIII!" Sharky swam over and tugged at Rou's hair and shirt, nipping at him over and over. “YOU ARE BACK!"

"I'm happy to see you too, Sharky," Ki said, chucking a little, and reaching out to run a finger over her head. Sharky bit his finger instead, and he winced but allowed it. "But-"

"Did I hear that Ki is back?" Sen asked, flying over. "Good. I was very disappointed when I heard that you had become a ReMare, young man."

"Sen. It's been a while," Ki was a bit more guarded with this greeting, and he bowed his head slightly. "I tried to assure that they would have good guidance from a wise spirit while I was gone."

"I've done what I could," she said simply. "What do you plan to do about the darkness?"

Ki retreated and Rou was the one who spoke. "We've went through this before. When Shika beat Year, and the three of you," he gestured at Nisei, Akito, and Meiko. "Tried to fight her with out armor."

"I didn't," Nisei objected.

"Well, Togo did. It doesn't matter. It's how she collects a lot of memories at once. Most of the dark spots should clear up on their own. But it's how a lot of people, including us, forgot that we were friends. And that Togo and I existed at all. It... was not a good day. I suspect this will not be a good day either, to be honest," Rou explained.

"So, how do we stop it?" Meiko asked.

"To be honest, I don't know," Rou said slowly.

"That's a first," Nisei muttered. Rou glanced at him and Nisei stood up straighter. "What?"

"The last time, I was focused on getting back the Time Driver, which is how you ended up being Summer. I did what I could. But we can do more this time. I'm not alone. We can all fight," Rou said, looking at all of us.

"So, we just go and kick the shit out of blots and ReMares until the color comes back?" Akito asked.

"That's not really a plan..." Meiko said, wrinkling her nose.

"Well, the idea is to show Shika we're not going down without a fight, right Meiki?" Rou glanced at me and I startled.

"I..." It terrified me. I knew that that was a likely outcome. Ki even warned us that he was distracting us so that we wouldn't rush in and get killed out of hand by the powerful deer ReMare. And it still frightened me. "I don't..." I took a deep breath. The alternative was that the world was falling apart. More people would die if we didn't act. I couldn't be selfish. "Yes."

"That's the awe inspiring motivational speech I've been waiting for!" Akito said, slinging an arm around my neck. I made a face at him, but put an arm around him too, glad for the physical comfort.

"That was not a motivational speech at all, Akito," Nisei said, looking confused.

"It inspired confidence in me, that's good enough," Akito said, waving away Nisei's confusion. "Do you two want me to patch you up before we roll out?"

“I think I'm alright," I said, pulling away to check where I had gotten hit. I had a few fading bruises on my shoulder, but they looked nearly healed already. My skin shimmered. I covered my shoulder.

"How about you, Rou?" Akito asked. "You look like you've been roughed up a bit."

"Yeah, this could use bandaging," he said pointing at a scrape. Akito nodded and grabbed his first aid kit and went over to him to patch up his scrapes.

"Are you sure you're-" Meiko walked over to me, and as she got closer she paused. "You're... sparkling?" Meiko said, taking my hand, and pulling it up to her face to look closer at it. "What happened, Meiki?"

"I... don't know?" I said. I pulled my hand away. "More weird Year stuff, I guess. It's honestly not the weirdest thing that's happened to me tonight. I split into four people a couple times. I still feel a little dizzy from that-” Meiko interrupted me by cupping my face in her hands and staring up at me. “I really don't know. I'm... guessing it's because I've used all of the Memokas now. Is it... is it too weird?”

Meiko shook her head. “No. Of course not. It's pretty. Does it hurt?”

“No. I'm fine, really,” I said. Or at least, I was probably fine. I hadn't had a lot of time to think about how weird it was to have sparkly skin all of a sudden. I caught Rou staring at me. “What?”

“She's right. It is pretty,” he said, but I could tell it wasn't what he had been thinking. He noticed me frowning and shook his head. “You could probably use Bright again, safely.”

“Do you have it now?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“No,” Rou said slowly. “I don't.”

“What happened to it?” Meiko asked, letting go of my face and turning to face Rou.

“It disappeared when it timed out,” Rou said. He sounded a little distracted, and I guessed he was consulting Ki about it, since he had been knocked out at that time. “I might be able to make another one...”

“No.” Nisei objected.

“Excuse me?” Rou looked at him as if he were a dog that had started arguing about whether or not the theory of relativity was a real thing.

“I will not help you with that again,” Nisei objected, his hand hovering over his pocket, where I could see his driver sticking out. His posture was unconsciously aggressive. “I'm done.”

Rou stared at him, and Nisei refused to back down. “That is fine. I'm not sure you can help anymore, to be honest,” Rou said. Or Ki. It was hard to tell. Nisei still looked alarmed.

“Was it that bad? I know Jiro can be a bit bossy but...” Akito said, patting Nisei on the shoulder.

“Rou was not involved.” Nisei shot him a glare.

“Ki then?” Akito asked, sounding as if he was about to get aggressive himself. “What did he do?” He looked over to Rou, who tilted his head.

“He was adding spirits to Nisei to try and get closer to being white light. Or something. I don't know. Ki's kind of wiped out still from being knocked back to spirit.” Rou shrugged. “As I said, I don't think he can do it anymore. I'm not entirely sure why he's angry about it,” Rou said, looking back over to Nisei.

Nisei shook his head. “I do not wish to do it again.” If I could make a guess though, I figured it was because he was still reeling from the changes he had went through in becoming human and was leery of accepting more. For which I couldn't blame him at all.

“Alright,” Rou said easily, which seemed to finally allow Nisei to relax. “More importantly, we should get going.”

The five of us set out, each of us transforming. I stuck with New, and the others stayed with their base forms. The blots that were prowling in the neighborhood were not particularly powerful, and it felt like a waste to go all out on them when we didn't know when Shika would pop up.

There weren't many blots or ReMares in the immediate arcade, and we made quick work on them before reaching one of the colorless areas. We stayed together as a team. I shot at the blots, and Winter stayed nearby to stand guard. New was a great shot, and the bullets packed a punch, but it was not great protection if something hit me. Fall was a whirling dervish of glaives and magic. Summer hit the blots easily with his nunchaku, and Spring came out like a lion, raining devastation on the blots with his quick hits. There was no way the thoughtless creatures could keep up with him, not with Ki's energy backing him up.

There didn't seem to be a limit to how many blots there were. For every one we beat, another took it's place. We were practically wading through the mess of inert blots.

“Wait!” Winter called out, and I halted. The others finished their attacks, and glanced over.

“What is it?” I asked, and took a shot at another blot that was sneaking up on Fall.

“There are people here,” she said, and gestured over to a nearby alley.

“There are?” Spring asked, and was immediately at our side, to try and see what Winter saw. And there were. They were gray and... watching. It was a little unsettling. They weren't cowering or confused. Just... observant. Spring made a clicking noise with his mouth as he tried to decide what to do. “New mission. Let's try and get these guys out of here. If you see a human, take them back to the arcade.”

“Roger!” Fall said, and fought his way over to them. “You guys alright? Abracadabra!” He waved a glaive near the entrance of the alley and a portal appeared. “Come through here, I'll take you someplace safe.” They obediently walked out of the alley, and through the portal.

Right out the other side of it, like it wasn't even there.

“Well. Huh,” Fall said, dismissing the portal. “They can't interact with it.”

“They're Forgotten,” Summer said, taking out a blot and catching his nunchaku between his arm and the side of his chest. “They don't exist.”

“You spoke!” I said, surprised.

Summer growled. “I told you I could.”

“Never mind that! What do you mean they don't exist? They're right here!” Fall said, grabbing one of them by the shoulders. The gray human just sort allowed Fall to jostle them, but didn't react.

“Nobody remembers them. They don't remember them. They're just instincts and a body,” Summer said coldly. “If we don't find the ReMare behind these blots, they'll die if you drag them out into the light.”

Fall glanced over at Spring, who shrugged. “I've never ran into a Forgotten before.”

“It happened to this body,” Summer said.

“I remember Togo,” Fall objected. Summer snarled and spun his nunchaku into a blot's face, and pushing onward, escaping from the conversation.

“You didn't. That weird turtle otter ReMare took your memories of him, didn't they?” Winter asked, blocking a blot with her heavy sword. She glanced over at him. “That's why you weren't fighting for a while, right?”

“Hn...” Fall didn't seem to want to be reminded of that. He reluctantly returned to fighting, staying near the Forgotten.

I didn't like it. It seemed like we weren't getting anywhere but further mired in the mud. I shot a large group of blots in rapid fire succession. “HEY!” I shouted. “IF YOU'RE THERE, COME AND FACE US, SHIKA!”

The blots burbled, and there was a distant rumbling sound, and I almost instantly regretted calling her out. I reached behind me and grabbed Winter's arm for support, and she shifted so she was next to me, her sword up protectively.

“Do you really want to do that?” A whispery voice said from behind me, and I whirled around and shot without thinking. A ReMare with silver and gold markings, and a large streak of green, hissed as the coins of red light hit him, and he wriggled and twitched his tail. "Well! Hello to you too!" he said, his louder now and a little annoyed. He looked like some sort of large lizard, with a long face and sharp teeth and a lolling tongue and narrowed red eyes. He grinned and tilted his head. "Are you not enjoying this? Because I could call her here, if you want. Although I think I'll be plenty enough for the likes of you. Don't you think so?" he whistled and the number of blots doubled. "Name's Gula. I'm one of Shika's captains. She's really pissed at you lot, you know? We don't get unleashed like this very often. But it's not like we're gonna need this town for much longer," he chattered, as we struggled against the endless tide of blots. "It's going right down the tube! Cause you know what you've done? You've gone and woken up the big guy, and he's huuuuungry-" he sounded like he was going to continue on like that, but Spring appeared behind him and punched at his head with his wrist knives. Gula whipped his head to the side, dodging easily and twisting his body so that he could face Spring. "Oh! You're here, now, huh? So much for keeping these idiots out of our way, huh, Ki?"

"You talk too much," Spring growled and punched at him again.

Gula dodged easily and scampered over to where Summer was wildly hitting blots with his nunchaku. He got very close to him, invading his personal space. Summer stood up straight, alarmed. "And you! I don't think we've met, have we? You're weird, aren't you? You smell delicious." he tested the air next to Summer's helmet, and Summer ducked out of the way quickly spinning around to face Gula, ready to attack. Gula seemed to have other ideas. He glanced back over to me, and said, "And YOU!" he weaseled his way to me, "Why, why why, look at you, butterfly!" he hissed, tipping up the bottom of my helmet to look me in my helmet's eyes.

I wasn't about to put up with that, so I held my gun up to his chest and shot him. He went wide eyed for a moment, staggering back, and clutching his chest dramatically. He wheeled in a circle on one foot, and then in a second circle on the other. He put his foot down and spread his arms, hands clawed. "Just kidding," he said lightly. "You're going to need more than that to get me down, little butterfly. I'm not a captain for no reason!"

Winter slashed him from behind, and he wriggled out of the way, ducking low and scuttling out of the way. "Naughty, naughty!"

"Try Rain!" Fall shouted, trying to keep the blots away from the Forgotten humans.

"It's not going to rain, what are you talking about?" Gula asked, scampering over to him, appearing at his shoulder. "Oh, are you protecting this garbage? Humans are so strange! You'd think you'd just throw it out, but you're here, trying to protect it! Garbage goes in the garbage!" Gula threw a fist through one of the Forgotten, and they crumbled into ash.

"No!" Fall shouted, and spun, trying to drive his glaive into Gula's chest. Gula ducked and grabbed the shaft, pulling Fall towards him, and pressing his lizard face against Fall's helmet.

"No?" His voice was low and whispery again. "Do you want to join them?"

"Henshin!" I shouted, and swiped the light blue Memoka across my Time Driver. Blue light rained down on me, and my armor changed from bright red to pale blue. I summoned the Prism Whip and struck Gula across the back. He whipped around and glared at me. "Didn't mean to rain on your parade, but..." I grinned when he sputtered angrily. I whipped him again and he tried to squirm his way out of the attack, but it still caught him on the face. He hissed.

Spring went to help Fall, clearing a path around the Forgotten. Summer grabbed at blots and tore into them, abandoning his weapons to just attack, shouting angrily and losing himself to the fight. It was getting him buried in ink though. Winter sliced at the blots, trying to break through to help Summer.

Gula circled me, and I watched him warily. Each time he tried to dart away towards the others, or towards me to attack, I flicked my wrist, catching him with the whip. After a few times he stopped, and watched me carefully, his chattering falling apart as he had to concentrate on watching me. He suddenly grinned and stopped circling me, and crossed his arms. "So, did Ki not tell you yet? Because you really should know."

I struck him with the whip. He winced and flinched under it, but he didn't move away, or move to block it. "I don't think he did. Oh my. It must be so confusing for you, isn't it?"

"What are you talking about?" I asked, shifting to be a more defensive stance.

"You should ask him. Ask him why he hasn't told you, right?" Gula tilted his head, glancing over to where Spring was riddling a blot full of holes. "He's always keeping secrets you know."

I shook my head, pushing aside doubts, and how he had hesitated to tell me about Shika and how I had forgotten being Year, and how he had snuck into the Under to get back the Time Driver. Those things were not important. He had lied and kept secrets, but everything had been to help us, to help us beat the ReMares. "I trust him."

"Oh sure! Not saying he isn't on your side. I mean he let himself get beaten by you punks. But that doesn't mean he isn't withholding very important information from you," he hissed. "As long as it helps you beat us nasty terrible ReMares, right?" he laughed, and I lashed out at him, hitting him with the whip again and again. This time, Gula ducked back, trying to escape my onslaught. He scurried up a light post and perched on the top of the light. "Did that strike a nerve, little butterfly?" Gula asked.

"Shut up!" I snapped. I couldn't reach him with the whip anymore. "I trust him!"

"Really? Even if he's lying about," Gula started.

"INSPIRATION FONT!" Spring's belt chimed and Gula was interrupted by a glowing pink foot in his face, and he dissolved into useless ink. Spring landed on one knee, facing away from me. He stood up slowly. The blots all fell into the ground, disappearing into the under, and color slowly started coming back to the surrounding area, including the Forgotten.

 

 


	36. Failure

I stared at Spring's back as the color of the areas was restored. He had just stopped that ReMare from talking by destroying it. He stopped to pick up the red orb, and set it on a piece of red origami paper and folded it carefully once it was absorbed into the sigil. "We'll figure out a body for you later, Gula," he said quietly.

"What was that about?" I asked wary.

Spring turned and faced me. "We need to keep moving. That stupid lizard said that He is moving, and if that's the case, we don't have time." He started heading down the road. Summer joined him. Winter and Fall both looked to me.

"No. Wait one second. You were fighting the blots. Why did you butt in just as he was saying something?" I demanded. "I said I trusted you, but that..."

"It looked pretty suspicious, Spring," Fall finished, crossing his arms.

"I'm not going to let some idiot talk about me like that," Spring said, gesturing vaguely towards where he had defeated the ReMare. "Or about Ki."

"So you're not hiding anything?" I demanded.

He stared hard at me. "Nothing you don't already know." Summer glanced between us and crossed his arms. I didn't buy it. Gula had started to say something about me, not about Summer.

"I don't think that was what he was talking about," I said guardedly.

"What's that?" Fall asked.

"Neither was I,” Spring said.

“Then I don't know!” I stomped a foot, frustrated.

“You do. But I am not going to jump in if you haven't figured it out." he paused and sighed, tilting his helmet to the side. I stared at him, trying to figure out what he meant. I had no idea. "I can't. I assure you. If I could, I would. It would not be good to force it. But In either case, it's not my place to say," Spring said, and shook his head. "We have to go, if we're going to save anyone else."

"Fine," I said, and angrily strode past him. Winter and Fall hesitated, but both of them followed after. I couldn't help dwelling on it. What was I supposed to know, but didn't? What would he know? More memories?

Thinking about memories dumped me sideways into a dizzying flood of them. Again, ordinary, like when i passed out after using Bright. I saw people studying. I saw someone trip and try and keep walking as if nothing had happened. I saw Akito's dad, talking sharply to someone on the cellphone, while his wife and young boys sat at a picnic. Little Akito and Togo were sharing sweets that they had brought, and discussing who was the strongest superhero on a TV show I hadn't heard about in ages. And suddenly I was on a boat, in a storm, and sailors shouted at each other as they scrambled to secure their safety. Then again, I was at the top of the mountain, and Ki was there, a small pink fox, standing on top of the stone from the clearing.

"Benten isn't going to stop, you know. He really thinks it will work," Ki said softly. "And... It looks like it is."

"It isn't, Ki," Another voice said, and it was like there was a sunrise behind Ki, despite it being from the east. "It's not a virus, it's a parasite. If we do that, it'll kill us."

"Then what do we do?" Ki asked. "Doing nothing is killing us too.”

"I'll talk with him."

And then I was in another memory, a laughing girl in twin braids, chasing butterflies with a net.

I was back with the others. My armor had disappeared and so had the others. Meiko and Akito both had an arm under my shoulders. I was standing only thanks to them.

"Are you okay?" Meiko asked, concerned. "You just stopped walking, and then it looked like you were going to fall."

"I think... I think so. I fell into a bunch of memories again. I saw... Akito and Togo's dad, and they were having a picnic, and then Ki was talking to somebody about a virus or something and..." It was already starting to get foggy. "I don't know."

"Can you keep going?" Akito asked.

"Yeah. I think it's done." I glanced over at Rou, who was frowning.

"Take it easy, Meiki," he said quietly. "Don't force yourself."

"Says the guy who nearly died this morning," Akito said, raising an eyebrow at him. "Seriously, Jiro. If you know what's going on with her, you should spill it."

"I don't understand it either, okay? Ki is... I know what he knows, for the most part, but I don't always understand. Like with the drivers." he ran a hand through his hair, clearly frustrated and worried. "She's the Bright Lady's champion. It's part of the power that was granted to her."

I took a deep breath and let it go. "Rou."

"Yeah?" Rou asked, apprehensive.

"Are you not saying because you think I'll be angry, or because you think I won't let you fight with us?" I kept my voice as even as I could. "Or because you think I would trust you less?" Those tended to be the reasons he balked. "Tell me honestly."

He faced me, looked me in the eye, and said "I am honestly saying I don't understand what is happening to you. What information I have, I think you actually know, and if you don't, it's because you've forgotten or hidden it from yourself, that it could be damaging to push yourself to remember it faster than what is natural."

I nodded slowly. "Alright," I said. "I trust you."

"I am here to help, Meiki," he said, although he sounded lost and helpless.

I took a deep breath and impulsively kissed Meiko and Akito on the cheeks. "The weird memory thing isn't new at all, you guys. Let's keep going." I pulled away from both of them, and led the way. I could see another area that was covered with the darkness. This one was covering a park and I could see Forgotten milling around in the distance. This time there weren't any blots, but as soon as we crossed over into the darkness, three ReMares showed up. The first was a girl who looked like she was half jellyfish, with bright blue streaks and indigo freckles. The second was a eye searingly yellow and sky blue... crayfish thing? And the last was a tanuki with brown and gold stripes.

Nisei stopped shortly as soon as he saw them.

The jellyfish ReMare put her hands on her hips, and leaned in. "What's that? Ugh, Pom, is this what you're upset about? Majakki, can you believe this?"

"Nope, I can't, Kurage. It's... weird." The crayfish waved her claws, objecting.

Pom, the tanuki, ignored them and walked towards Nisei. "So. This is where you've been hiding."

"I haven't been hiding," Nisei said, his voice especially stiff and sharp.

"He haaaaaas," Kurage said, coming up and leaning against Pom. "Look at him!"

"Is it... true?" Pom asked.

"It's none of your business,” Nisei said, and reached for his driver.

"I think it is," Majakki said, coming up next to Pom and leaning on her too. "Oh dear. He's not even one of us anymore, is he? It's worse than we thought!"

"What are they on about?" Akito asked, grabbing his own driver and putting it to his waist.

"I knew it wasn't a good idea to mess with Tigra and all that rider technology," Kurage said.

"Shut up," Nisei said, and put on his belt. "HENSHIN!" he stamped it, and the sigil appeared over him. Akito echoed him, and they both transformed.

We were close behind. I picked Year, and shifted to a fighting stance, ready to fight.

“Five of them? Ugh. Majakki, you know what to do, right?” Kurage said, spinning her jellyfish tendrils back and forth. She lashed out and grabbed both Winter and Spring with her tentacles.

“Yep, sure do,” Majakki said, and splashed into the Under. Small patches of ink appeared all over the park.

“Guys!” I shouted, and ran towards them.

And fell flat on my face as something grabbed my ankle. I pulled myself up to my elbows to look back, trying to pull my foot away. A black claw with yellow patches gripped my boot. I twisted around and hit it a few times with the Prism Sword before she let me go. I stood up. Fall had engaged the jellyfish ReMare, slashing at it with his glaives. She grabbed both of the weapons with her tentacles and brought them up to hover in front of Winter and Spring's chests instead.

“Is that really what you want to do?” Kurage said, grinning wickedly.

Winter banished her sword for being useless. She couldn't move her arms enough to get the leverage to move the bulky weapon, and Kurage was starting to tug at it with her tentacles. It was obvious that Winter didn't want another weapon pointed at her. “Get rid of them, Fall!” Winter commanded, and started struggling to flex her way out of her entanglement. but Kurage just laughed and wrapped her up with more tendrils. Fall nodded and banished his weapons, and made them reappear in his own hands. Spring looked surprisingly peaceful, but then Kurage shrieked and dropped him, several of her tentacles dissolving into goop. Spring landed neatly and held up a bladed wrist, and slashed at her tentacles again. She didn't like that, and grabbed him again, and tossed him away, back towards me. He rolled and popped back up on one knee.

Summer had launched himself at Pom, who defended herself from his blows. Pom spun and hit him both with her thick tail, knocking him back.“You could come back to us, Nisei,” Pom said, shifting back to a defensive posture. “You belong with other tanuki, don't you? Why are you helping humans?”

Summer stood back up, and snarled, “I AM HUMAN!”

That distracted Fall's attempt to dodge Kurage's tendrils, and she hit him hard with a ton of them, knocking him back. Fall jumped up, turning to Summer and Pom.

Summer noticed Fall staring at him, and screamed in frustration. He renewed his attack on Pom.

Winter had managed to get enough leeway to get a foot up into Kurage's bindings, and was pushing them away, struggling in a tangled mess. “Fall!” she called out. “He can handle it!”

“Right! Sorry!” Fall called back, and stamped his driver again, becoming Deep Fall. He summoned both swords and started hacking away at Kurage's tendrils. She wailed, and grabbed at his arms, pulling him into the air.

Spring and I glanced at each other and nodded, and both started running at the jellyfish ReMare again. Again, a huge crab claw popped out of a hole and grabbed me by the ankle. She caught Spring by the ribbon and he fell back onto his butt. This time she quickly let go and disappeared, but as soon as either of us tried to move closer to Kurage or Pom, she reached up and sat us on our asses.

“This isn't working,” Spring said, attempting to kick at the ink splotches on the ground, to see if she would come up again. She wasn't taking the bait, so he turned to run towards Fall again. And as soon as he turned, Majakki grabbed him by the foot. “Summer!” Summer glanced over, both of his hands grabbing Pom's hands, struggling to overpower each other. “If you run across the field with us, she can't grab everybody.”

Summer grunted and shoved Pom back, turning immediately to run towards Kurage. Spring and I started to run too. And all three of us were dragged to the ground at the same time. “How many claws does that weirdo have?!” I demanded, getting back up on one knee.

Just then, Winter had almost gotten free of her bindings, so Kurage adjusted her grip and threw her at Deep Fall. Deep Fall tried to catch Winter, but he lost his balance and they ended up tangled on the ground. Kurage put her hands on her hips and taunted us, “Idiots! As long as she's in the Under she can grab you from all of the holes at once. She might as well have a million claws!”

Winter managed to detangle herself from Deep Fall, and held out a hand to pull him up. He took it and got back to his feet. “You okay?” he asked.

“I should ask you that,” she said.

“Psh, I'm fine. Abracadabra,” he said, and a portal appeared in front of them. “Shall we?” he asked, bowing dramatically to allow her to go first. She nodded and they both took a step towards the portal, but Majakki grabbed them by the feet, and the portal flickered away. “Dammit! Abracadabra,” Deep Fall said again, and this time the portal appeared underneath them. Winter and Deep Fall both fell through it.

Pom walked over towards Summer and grabbed him by his scarf and pulled him up.”If you want me to get serious, I will. If you're human, you're disposable. You're food,” she said. She threw him back, and he hit the ground hard, rolling to my feet. I reached down to help him up. He growled and took my hand, pulling himself up.

And I fell into his memory. Young Togo was on the beach, with his mother. They were wearing big boots and his mother carried a bucket. “Do you see these little holes here? They're where the mud shrimp live.”

'How do we get them out, mama?” Togo asked.

“We're going to tickle them,” she said, and tickled his sides. Togo giggled. “With this special brush.”

“Isn't that just a calligraphy brush?” Togo asked.

“It is! We just poke it in here,” she said, “and tickle the little mud shrimp, and...” She pulled it out, and there was an ugly little crayfish clamped onto the end of the brush. “Out it comes!”

“I want to try!” Togo said, snatching the brush from her hands.

And then I was back in the park, and I knew what I had to do.

“Henshin!” I said, and swiped the purple Memoka. It started playing music and purple light swirled around me. My armor switched to purple, and I drew my Prism Brush.

“Are you going to try and outnumber them?” Spring asked.

“That won't work, stupid! It doesn't matter how many of you there are, she'll still be able to-” Kurage was cut off by Winter yelling, which quickly became Kurage yelling, as Deep Fall's portal appeared over her head and dropped them both on her. Winter managed to turn the fall into a clumsy kick, and hopped back, drawing her sword now to block Kurage from using her tentacles on her. Deep Fall slashed at Kurage on the way down and flipped back to stand near Winter.

“Warn me next time!” Winter said, and punched him in the shoulder.

“Ow!” He flinched, and rubbed the armor where she had hit him. “It worked, didn't it?”

Pom spun around in place, and a dozen blots appeared around her. She charged Summer with them. He roared and thrashed around, hitting them back with his nunchaku. I punched one or two that got close, as I slowly retreated. I passed Spring.

“Help Summer. I've got this!” I told Spring, and ducked over to the side to kneel next to one of the ink holes. I prayed that this would actually work, and stuck the brush, light end first, into the ink and wiggled it around. After a moment, I felt a tug, and I pulled with all my might. It pulled back, and I lurched forward, digging in my heels to avoid being tossed into the Under.

Spring hit a blot in the face and zipped over to me anyway, grabbing my shoulders and adding his weight to mine. Blots started dog piling Summer, and he roared as he tried to fling them off of him.

We pulled again. With a sickening splotch, I pulled Majakki out of the ink. She had clasped onto my Memoka. “Hi there. Nice of you to join us, yeah?” I said, and kicked her hard in the chest. She stumbled back and scrambled towards another ink hole.

“I don't think so!” Spring said, and ran after her. I slashed the air with the brush and made a single copy of myself. I transformed the copy into New. New shot at Majakki, as my Hime form ran towards the pile of blots that were sitting on Summer.

I pulled them off of him, throwing them to the side. They splattered onto the ground, and rose back up to fight again. “You okay?”

He stood up and stamped his belt, transforming into Midsummer.

“I'll take that as a yes,” I said, dashing back to avoid getting caught up in his sigil.

As soon as the sigil lowered over him, he roared and slashed at some of the offending blots. I threw a punch at Pom, and she caught it with her hand. “I don't care about you, weirdo,” she said, and swiped low with her feet, trying to knock me down. I stumbled back, avoiding her kick, but I still had to retreat a bit. Midsummer roared, and tackled her out of nowhere, knocking them both to the ground. A blot immediately engaged me, so I grappled with it instead.

Over with Spring, I was shooting at Majakki, and Spring was hurrying to keep blocking her any time she stepped closer to one of the holes. “You don't like it either, when there's no way to run,” I taunted.

“Ow!” she yelped as one of the coins grazed her back.

Kurage was looking pretty worse for the wear. Many of her tentacles were in tatters, and Deep Fall was using his portals to keep Winter from getting caught again as they slashed at her.

Pom kicked Midsummer off of her and scrambled up to her feet. “How uncouth! You've gotten quite savage, Niseimon!”

I threw one of the blots at her and it knocked her back a little.

“I'm NISEI!” He shouted, and jumped into the air.

His belt chimed, “FUGITIVE COLOR!” He landed his foot in her face and she dissolved into a pile of inert ink and a globe of brown light.

Both Winter and Deep Fall's belts chimed.

“WHITE OUT!”

“FOCUS POINT!”

And Winter made a huge arching motion with her sword, and slashed at Kurage. Deep Fall followed closely behind, making a huge glowing ex with his swords. Kurage also fell into a puddle and disappeared, aside from a ball of indigo light.

“INSPIRATION FONT!” Spring's belt chimed.

At the same time, both of my belts noisily echoed each other. “VANISHING POINT!”

I aimed New's gun at Majakki and let the power build up. I blasted her with a huge amount of energy, and Majakki stood there stunned for a second, as Spring jumped into the air and kicked her with his bladed boots. She crumpled into a pile of ink.

I used Hime's vanishing point to get rid of all of the remaining blots. The air cleared, and the park slowly went back to being bright and verdant in the early morning sun. It might be January first, and it might be cold, but there were still flowers growing in the gardens, and grass underfoot. We were far south enough for it. A full half of the trees even had leaves, despite none of them being evergreens.

As New, I gave Spring a high five, but I also was wiping clear Hime's transformation, so New slowly dissipated into purple light in front of Spring, causing him high five through my hand as I disappeared.

Midsummer's shoulders were heaving as he sat there, staring at Pom's globe of light. Without looking, he swiped clear his transformation.

Akito came up behind him, and crouched next to him, throwing an arm around him. “Was that your girlfriend?” he asked, grinning.

Nisei shoved him. “No. We were both tanuki. That's all.”

Akito shoved him back. “Yeah? You said you were human, didn't you?”

Nisei hesitated but nodded slowly. “I said that.”

“Thought so,” Akito said, and ruffled his hair as he stood back up.

Nisei glanced up at him. “You did?”

“You've been acting weird since you bumped into Meiki when she was Bright,” Akito said.

Nisei nodded slowly and stood up. “I see. And you are not angry?”

“Why would I be angry?” Akito said. “You're my bro.”

Nisei didn't answer that.

Rou walked over to them and grabbed Akito's arm, holding Majakki spirit with one hand. “I'll explain later,” he said. “Hold this.” He pushed the globe at Akito and took Pom's spirit and gave it to Akito too, before heading over to Meiko, who was yawning and going to pick up Kurage's spirit. She handed it off to Rou. Rou put it into a paper like the other one we had defeated, and then started making some for the other two.

“He might be stuck in Togo's body,” Meiko said quietly as she came over. Nisei shot her a sharp glare, and then shifted it to me.

“I didn't say anything!” I said, putting my hands up in protest.

“No. I heard it. It wasn't like you were being quiet. You'd wake the dead with your shouting, Nisei,” Meiko said, hands on her hips.

“He's... stuck?” Akito said slowly. “As in... he can't even turn back into a spirit?”

Nisei sighed, defeated. “I can't. This is my body now.”

“Then... You were getting Togo's memories, weren't you?” Akito asked. Nisei only nodded. “So... What will happen?”

Nisei threw his hands up into the air. “Like I know! This hasn't happened to anyone else. I can't think of anything even close!”

“I can,” said a soft voice, and it ran shivers up my sides and turned my insides to pudding.

I looked around desperately. “No, no, no!” I said, repeating it as subconsciously as breathing.

“Oh yes,” Shika said, sliding out of the under as if she were ascending an ornate stair case and not coming out of the ground. “Are you surprised? I do not break my promises, you know. You and your friends disobeyed me, Butterfly.”

The air started to gray again, and I felt like I was falling sideways, my hands scrambling for purchase, my lungs screaming for air.

There was a flash of searing white light.

And there was the little girl with the two braids again. She was wearing a bright yellow hat now, and carrying a red ransel backpack, square and still shiny and new. She was walking with another girl who had long pigtails and a dress, as well as a matching backpack and hat. They were singing as they walked. I recognized the girl with the pigtails. She looked a lot like Meiko when we had first started school. She had to be Meiko. Then... Was the other girl me?

"I'm gonna go to my grandma's house today. Mom said I gotta. So I'll see you later, Mei-chan," The girl with the braids said, her hands on her hips.

"Oh... Okay,” the other girl said quietly, scuffing her shiny black shoes on the cement. Then she flashed a brilliant smile. "Bye bye, Mei-chan!" the little Meiko said before running off.

And the memory lurched, and the little girl with braids was running through the forest. She fell and skinned her knee. She inspected the injury, and blood was welling up and dripping down her leg. So she did what any sensible child would do and wailed, with big tears flowing from her eyes.

A butterfly appeared, white and faintly glowing. It landed on her uninjured knee, and she was distracted enough to hiccup and sniffle. Her tears stopped. "H-hi there, butterfly," she said. "I... I'm lost. Can you help me?"

The butterfly said nothing, but after a second, it fluttered into the air. The girl with the braids stood up and limped after it. It took her out of the forest and landed on the gate of an old Japanese style house. The sign at the post said Kimura, and the girl said "Thank you butterfly-san! Bye bye!" She waved, before pushing the gate open and shouting "GRANDMA!"

And there were a flurry of images, of the girl playing, or climbing on things, or fighting with boys or dancing or carefully practicing calligraphy with her grandmother. And in each brief image, the butterfly was there.

I didn't know what it meant. The girl had to be me. But as hard as I thought, I couldn't actually remember any of these things happening. It was almost as if they were a stranger's memories.

And then I was thrown out of the memory.

I stood in the middle of the park, and the winter chill bit at me. I pulled my jacket closer, and looked around. What was I doing at the park that early in the morning? I decided that I must have been going for a walk. I went over to the nearest sidewalk and started down the path. It seemed eerily empty. Were there usually people walking around now? I didn't know.

Had I come out here to spend more time being active? As a New Year's resolution?

Right. It was New Years. No wonder there was nobody around. They must be at home, with their families. I finished the lap around the park and looked around for my bicycle. I couldn't find it. Huh. I didn't think I'd walk all the way here. It wasn't that close to my house. Had I been out partying?

"That must have been some wild party," I muttered to myself. I didn't think I would have went out on New Year's Eve, but I felt sore, like I had gone dancing for hours. My head felt fine though, which was odd. Still, I wasn't going to argue with the party gods if they saw fit to spare me a splitting headache.

It took me the better part of an hour to get to the nearest shopping arcade, and I walked down it. It was so weird to be walking alone in a place that was usually bustling with people. In fact. It felt very weird to be alone at all.

And suddenly I was surrounded by people, gathered around the shrine up the mountain, giving offerings at the alter, and chatting and calling “Happy New Year” to people they recognized. And then I was not. I was standing in front of a little cafe, called Momiji. "That was weird..." I said. I must have dozed off while I was walking. The cafe looked open, surprisingly. Even the McDonald's down at the other end of the arcade had been closed. I didn't feel hungry. The thought of eating something made my stomach turn. I silently cursed myself for drinking too much the night before. Still, coffee sounded good, if only to warm me up. A bell chimed as I pushed the door open, and I went to sit down at the table.

A short man, with shoulder length hair dyed an orangish blond, came out of the kitchen. "Oh, hey! Welcome. Can I get you something?" he had a charming grin, and mischievous eyes.

"Yeah. Can I get something hot to drink? Coffee, maybe?" I asked.

"For a pretty lady like you? Sure can," he said, "I just put a pot on, so it'll be out in a few minutes, okay?"

I felt my cheeks burn. "Thanks. I was really surprised to see you were open today, with the holiday," I said.

"Ah, is that today?" he asked, and ran a hand through his hair. "Honestly, I'm a little disoriented today. I should probably go say hello to my parents..." I stared at him, shaking my head ever so slightly. I felt an overwhelming sense of panic, like that was exactly what he shouldn't do. I didn't know why. I didn't know him. It was normal to visit family on New Years. He trailed off, and looked surprised. "Oh! I'm not kicking you out. Don't worry about that. You take it easy, okay?"

"No... I um... I don't know why, but I got the feeling like you shouldn't visit them," I said squirming. "But, that's none of my business.”

"No, no, you're probably right," he laughed, and my heart melted a little. "My dad's a jerk, anyway. But I do need to say hi to my mom. Are you psychic or something?"

I shook my head no. "I don't think so? Today has been weird."

"You're telling me," he said. "Lemme get that coffee for you, kiddo."

"Don't call me kiddo, Akito," I said, more tired than annoyed. And then more surprised than anything, because the name Akito suited him so well, and I don't know where I pulled it from.

"... Are you sure you're not psychic? Because I don't think I told you my name," he said, hesitating at the kitchen door.

'I don't know, maybe?" I rubbed my forehead. "I'm Mei, by the way. Kimura Mei. There. At least it's fair now."

"A beautiful name for a beautiful lady." he grinned and ducked into the kitchen. He returned with a big steaming mug of coffee, and a plate full of creams and sugars. "Here you go, Mei. Is it alright if I call you that?"

I nodded, and the door bell chimed again. A tall, scrawny man walked through. He had dark circles under his eyes and a few small bandages on his face and hands He had a bright shock of pink hair, and he wore a leather motorcycle jacket and hakama. He looked really cool, although I didn't think it was possible for someone like me to pull of style like that.

"Oh, hey. Jiro-san, I just made coffee. Do you want some?" Akito asked.

"...San?" he asked, stopping in his tracks.

"I mean, if you want me to just call you Jiro, that's fine." Akito shrugged.

"We... You're... Meiki, is he sick or something?" The tall boy asked. "He's never been polite to me a day in his life."

"Uh..." I shrugged helplessly. "I really don't know what's going on, Rou."

"Do you know each other?" Akito asked, "How? I thought nobody knew you?"

“I... don't think so?” I said, tilting my head.

“But you know my name,” Rou said, frowning.

“I guess?” I said, starting to feel more scared than confused.

“What about Nisei? And Meiko?” Rou demanded.

“Who?” I said, and instantly regretted it. It felt like someone had put a hot poker through my heart.

The tall boy's eyes flicked pink and he put a lot of feeling into one word. "Fuck!"

 

 


	37. Bonds and Memories

I grabbed a fist full of fabric over my heart, willing it to stop hurting. I was missing something very important, and I felt like I was falling into a pit. I stared at the two boys, feeling incredibly lost.

Rou started pacing back and forth. “This is bad, this is bad.”

“What's bad?” Akito asked, although he was starting to seem more and more agitated. It seemed like Rou was going to wear a path into the floor.

“This!” Rou gestured at everything. “This is bad!”

“You pointed at everything,” Akito said, alarmed.

“EXACTLY!” Rou said, stopping to run his hands through his hair. “We should know each other. You've been my... We've been friends since... Dammit, I don't know. For a long time. And... Something bad must have happened if we don't remember it.”

“You don't remember us either?” I asked, frowning.

He shook his head. “I remember being friends, but... I feel like... a lot is missing. Details,” he said. “More details than feelings.”

“That,” I said, pointing at him. “That's how I feel too.”

Akito crossed his arms, and looked thoughtful. “ReMares?” he said at length. Rou looked up at him, alarmed. Akito shrugged. “I heard something on the radio news about some memory eating monsters. There was some guy called Kamen Rider Year... he was fighting them, right?”

“So... If we find Year, he could help us?” I asked.

“Yes!” Rou said, nodding and pointing at me. “We find Year.”

“How? If he's some kind of superhero, it's not like he's just gonna pop out of nowhere, right?” I asked. “He's probably got a secret identity or something.”

“We could start with the radio station. I went to some event at the mall where they had Year show up. So they must have some sort of contact,” Akito said.

“I think I remember going to that too,” I said, uncertain. The radio station did have a certain pull to it. It was better than nothing.

“Good. Let's go.” Rou said, and headed towards the door.

“W-wait, now?” Akito said, scrambling to follow.

“Yes, now!” Rou slammed the door open.

We approached the the radio station building like we were going to fight it. Rou looked like he'd shake the first person we saw until they gave us answers.

It was dark, and the doors were locked. Rou slammed his fist on the door, once, but no one came.

“Well. It is New Year's Day,” Akito said, reasonably. “They're probably on holiday. Which I might have told you when we left the cafe, if you hadn't been in a yank to get here.”

“Shut up! Just... Stop talking!” Rou snapped, holding his head with one hand and holding the other out as if he was attempting to physically stop his words. “We'll figure it out!”

“Figure what out? We don't have another lead!” Akito said.

“It's fine, I've got it,” I said, pulling out my keys and unlocking the door. I pushed it open. Rou and Akito both stared at me, dumbfounded. “What?” I asked, confused.

“You work here! Why didn't you tell us? What do you know about Year? Where can we find him?” Rou demanded.

I let his questions wash over me like waves on sand, until it finally clicked. I did have the keys. That meant I worked here, right? “Right! I'm a morning host,” I said, hitting my open palm with my fist. “I forgot. I... still don't know anything about Year, though.”

Rou slumped his shoulders and turned to cross his arms and press his head against them and the wall. He yelled wordlessly, the sound muffled by his arms.

“Do you have work contacts in your phone?” Akito asked, sounding rather responsible next to Rou's temper tantrum. He walked into the room, and plucked a business card from a small dish on the desk to look at it.

“Maybe,” I said, and pulled out my cell phone. Near the top of the list was Meiko. My heart skipped a beat. I glanced over at Rou, “Do you think I know Meiko from work?” I asked.

“Yes!” Came his exasperated voice, still muffled. He peeked out from behind his arm. “I don't care if you do, she's important! Call her anyway!”

“Looks like it, kiddo,” Akito said, handing over the business card. It had both mine and Meiko's contact information. Along with cute little drawings of both of us. Gosh, that was adorable.

“Thanks,” I said. I didn't blame Rou for putting himself in time out. I also wanted to scream and bang my head against the wall until things started making sense. I dialed the number. Each ring made my heart beat faster.

A soft voice answered. “Hello?”

“Hi, Meiko? This is Mei... Meiki. I have a work question for you?” I said, playing with the end of my braid while I spoke.

“What do you need?”

“Do you know anything about Year?” I asked.

“Oh! Yes, I do. I've met him,” she said.

“You have? Do you know where to find him?” I asked, making a gesture at Akito for something to write with. He handed me a pen and one of the business cards.

“Yes, he's one of our interns. His name is... Oh, what was it...” There was some noise on the other end. It sounded like she was looking for something. “Meian Nisei. Do you have his number?"

“Um, yes, actually,” I said, remembering that I had seen it on my contacts list.”Thank you so much.”

“No problem. Is that all you need?”

“I think so, but wait a second," I said, trailing off and glancing over at Rou. “Rou?”

Rou turned to me. "Don't hang up with her. Get her to meet us."

“Alright,” I said, and then went back to Meiko. “Hey, actually, could you meet me?”

“Really? It's New Year's Day,” she said, sounding a little annoyed.

“It's New Year's,” I told Rou.

“I don't care! This is important!” Rou said, pacing across the room.

I glanced at Akito, who shrugged. “I'm just along for the ride. This is more interesting than what I had planned for today.”

“I... Meiko, sorry. But apparently it's important? We might have gotten mixed up in some ReMare stuff, and if you know Year personally, you might be able to help convince him to help us. Please? I'll make it up to you some how," I said.

She was quiet for a moment, and I started to worry that she had hung up on me.

“Meiko?”

“Alright. I'll do it,” she said. “Where?”

“Where?” I asked Rou.

“I don't know. What's going on today?” Rou asked.

“Oh, only New Years,” Akito said, rolling his eyes. “You know, the biggest holiday of the year?”

“Right.” Rou looked thoughtful for a moment.

“Akito, weren't you surprised about what day it was when I came into your cafe?” I asked.

“Me? Never!” He objected, winking at me. I fought the urge to roll my eyes.

“Shush. We'll meet at the temple, up the mountain. There will be a lot of people there, and it's possible that a place like that could be a target for ReMares.”

“We want to go some place where there will be ReMares?” Akito asked under his breath.

“Year has to fight them, right?” Rou said shortly.

It didn't make much sense to me, but I figured that at least it was a place Meiko was already planning on visiting. “Can you meet us at the temple, actually? The one up on Mt. Shodai.”

“Yeah, alright. See you there,” she said, and then she did hang up.

“Alright, next, to call Meian,” I said, and dialed the number.

The phone clicked and stopped ringing, "Hello, you've reached Meian Nisei! Happy New Year!" I had to pull the phone away from my ear. It was like talking to someone who both understood perfect phone etiquette but somehow missed the memo on how phones actually worked, and thought he had to shout really loudly to be heard halfway across the town. “May I ask who is speaking?!”

“Hello, this is Kimura Mei. Happy New Year. Um. You're an intern at the radio station, right?”

“Yes, boss!” he shouted, and I got the mental image of him bowing very sharply.

“Right,” I said, realizing that I would technically be his boss, and feeling kind of like a jerk because I didn't remember actually meeting him. “Meiko-san said...” That sounded wrong, “Meiko said that you were Kamen Rider Year?”

“Yes! I'm living in color!” I could tell he bowed here too. “How can I assist you?”

“Are you busy?” I asked.

“I don't care if he's busy!” Rou grumbled.

I shushed him.

“Not at all!” Nisei shouted.

“Good. Could you meet us up at the temple on Mt. Shodai?” I asked.

“The temple?” he asked.

“Yes,” I said, nodding slightly.

“When?”

“As soon as possible? We're leaving from the radio station now,” I said.

“Understood! If you will excuse me!”

“See you later,” I said, and hung up. “Damn, that boy is loud. Why is he in radio? He'd be better off being the town crier or something.”

"Here ye, here ye!" Akito mimed ringing a bell.

"Yeah, yeah. Let's go!" Rou said, grabbing Akito's arm and pulling him out of the radio office. I followed and locked the door behind me.

There was a lot of traffic going up the mountain, although Rou and Akito's motorcycles did make it easier to slip past stopped cars. I sat behind Akito, holding him around the waist. At the temple, people were chatting and buying fortunes for the new year, and making offerings of coins and origami at the altar.

I saw Meiko looking at lucky charms, and my heart skipped a beat. She was very cute, and I found myself absently hitting Akito's arm before walking over to her. "Um... Hi," I said, feeling suddenly very stupid.

"Hello," she said, looking up at me through her long eye lashes. "You must be Meiki."

"I, yes. That's me,” I said, bowing slightly. By now Akito and Rou had followed me over. "This is Akito and Rou."

"Happy New Year," she said politely.

"Yo," Akito said, "Are you having as weird of a day as I am?"

"Probably," she said, sounding amused. "I find it odd, that until this moment, I didn't remember the face of the person I work with every day. Which is a shame."

Some how that got through my thick head and I had the decency to blush furiously. "Yeah, I didn't remember I even worked there at all until I had unlocked the door."

"It's bad," Rou said, craning his neck and standing on tip toes to scan the crowd. "Where is Nisei? He should be here already."

"There he is," Akito said, pointing out a young man in a starchily pressed white button up shirt and black dress pants. He faltered. "Just kidding? I don't know him."

"Don't get in my way then!" Rou snapped.

"Sorry, your highness, it's not like I'm blocking anything," he said, gesturing at their height difference. "Do any of us actually know what he looks like?" I glanced over at Meiko, and she shook her head no.

"I've just seen him in his armor," she said.

Rou dropped back to the balls of his feet, and slumped. "No. All I remember is his name and that he's important."

"Yeah, see? Looking around isn't going to help at all." Akito cupped his hands to his mouth. "MEIAN NISEI!" he shouted.

The young man that Akito had pointed out immediately turned his head to look at us. And so did about three dozen other families, but the young man actually started walking over. "Did you call me?" he asked.

"Dang, I'm good," Akito said, grinning.

"Yeah, I just called you earlier. I'm Meiki. You're Kamen Rider Year, right?"

"That is correct. Did you want to do a live show here? I brought the costume," Nisei said, patting a big black sports bag.

"You... brought the costume?" I asked. "Wait... Live show?"

"Yes. You wish for me to dress up as Kamen Rider Year and pretend to fight monsters, right?” Nisei asked, looking confused. “Right?”

“No, we want you to actually fight monsters,” Rou said.

“I know it sounds like he's being sarcastic, but he's not,” Akito said helpfully.

“I... what? Year isn't real. It was a radio stunt,” Nisei said.

“No, I remember seeing you fight,” Meiko said, shaking her head.

“I did! But it was all fake. Special effects. I'm taking a class on stage fighting at school. It's a physical education credit,” Nisei explained.

“So... I dragged everyone out here... for an actor and... What the heck is going on?” I asked, putting my hand up to my forehead. I felt dizzy.

And suddenly, I was back with the little girl in the forest. She was sitting with her back against a rock, chatting to herself.

No, not to herself. There was a white butterfly on a nearby flower.

“And then, wham! Pow! He punched the bad guy right in the face with a super cool power up move! And the bad guy went wheeeeew! Into the stars! He was soooo strong,” the girl said, waving her arms around to suit her words, “And then Magic Yankee Super Fight Go! came on TV and she hit the other bad guy with a big metal pole and said “You walked into that one, idiot!” And she was so strong and cool!” The girl punched the air, as if beating up imaginary bad guys.

And then I was back at the temple, being supported by Rou. The others had gathered around, looking concerned. “Wha...? What happened?”

“You just sort of passed out. Do you have a medical history of seizures or fainting? Do you have low blood sugar?” Akito asked, holding onto my wrist and looking at his watch as he counted heart beats in his head.

“No... I don't think so, anyway?” I said. “I think I just remembered talking to a butterfly?” I said slowly.

“What?” Nisei said, and it was more incredulous than an actual question.

“What.” Rou repeated.

“And last question, are you high?” Akito asked, raising an eyebrow.

“No?” I said, although at this point it felt like nothing could be ruled out.

“She is the butterfly,” said a soft voice, that instantly sent shivers down my spine. I clutched harder onto Rou's arms, glad that he was already supporting me.

A looming figure appeared out of the ground, inky and slender. Her limbs seemed too long, and she had massive branching antlers. She wasn't just jet black though. She had small specks of glowing color, making her look a little bit like an oil slick. She was beautiful, but terrifying. “But you don't remember that, do you?” The tall eldritch deer woman tilted her head slightly, staring down at us. “That's fine. But, I must admit,” she said, and she fanned out a set of thirteen markers in both of her hands. “I find myself wanting to have you witness this anyway.”

And she shifted all of the markers to one hand and plucked one from the bunch. It was bright red. "I could have just taken your driver from you, but... It didn't work last time, did it?" She crushed the red marker into dust. Red sparkling light fell to the ground and was absorbed into ink, which rose up and started forming a long centipede like body. I shuddered. Then she took the blue one, and crushed it. "But this is much more satisfying, don't you think?" The blue light fell to the ground and was absorbed by ink, and it rose up, becoming a cat monster. She crushed the purple marker, and the light combined with the ink to become an elephant headed monster.

"Stop it!" I said, pushing myself to my feet.

"Why?" The deer woman crushed the pink one next, and Rou flinched. A light fell to the ground and the ink formed a rabbit person around it. "Does this bother you?" She crushed another one, the gold one. It fell to the ground and became an odd otter turtle monster. She crushed the light blue one next. A chameleon monster appeared. "What are you going to do about it?" Then the yellow, which became a bird lady.

"I..." I hesitated and touched my pocket on my vest. There was a hard rectangle there, that felt like a phone. I pulled it out. It looked like a small dry erase board. Instinct took over. I raised it in the air and said, "Henshin!" and brought it down to my waist. It wrapped around me like a belt, and I made a motion like I was swiping something across it and putting it in the slot.

Absolutely nothing happened.

The deer woman laughed, and crushed an orange marker. It became a mantis monster. "Oh, you remember that much, do you? And what was that supposed to accomplish?" she asked.

"I... I am Year!" I said, shifting my stance to something more aggressive. My knees were shaking.

"You?" Rou said, exasperated and terrified. "Why didn't you figure that out sooner!"

"You, little butterfly, are nothing," she said, and crushed a silver Memoka, which became an owl monster. "And you've gotten in our way for the last time, do you understand? We will consume this town, and there will be nothing left." She crushed an indigo marker, which became a moth monster, and then a brown. A tall bull headed monster came out of the ink. Then she crushed the green one, which became another mukade centipede.

"I will protect this town's precious memories!" I said, and it felt like someone else was saying it. I felt like I was a million miles away, watching the scene distantly.

"How?" She asked, and crushed the last white marker.

Everything went dark.

Even the stripes and markings on the ReMares went dark. The whole city as far as I could tell, was dark. It was darker than I had ever experienced. Even the darkest room I had ever been in had even distant starlight or moon light to break up the night. This... This was so dark, I didn't even feel real.

I remembered being in a situation that it was entirely opposite. Before, I felt like I was floating in empty light, without a clue in my head. My friends had pulled me out.

Now, I felt like I was drowning in thick, viscus ink, panicked thoughts rushing through my head. My friends were gone. Everything was gone. I was gone, and I couldn't do anything to help them. I had to help them. All of them. The humans and the spirits. I didn't want to die alone.

I didn't want to be alone.

I shouted for help, my mouth making the motions, but there was no sound.

Couldn't speak, couldn't breathe. It felt... weirdly familiar. It would be easier to give in. To disappear with this city.

Suddenly, there was a tiny spark of light. It felt a million miles away, and at the same time, blinding in the darkness. It too, felt familiar. I reached for it, and found it was just at my chest. It burned. And it grew, becoming a small white butterfly.

“I am here. We are not gone yet. Don't let go,” said a distant voice. Each word felt like colors bursting in my mind, sparkling and bright. In my hand, I felt something hard, and I gripped it like a life line. It burned, but it was there. “Say it with me.”

I nodded. “Henshin,” I whispered, the colorful voice backing it up.

Light burst from me, white and searing, but also colorful and wild.

And then my friends were there, colorless and dazed. The light touched them and color returned to their bodies. They collapsed, leaning against each other, eyes closed. I hoped they were okay. I clenched my fist, feeling the armor as I moved. I was Bright. Somehow.

“It is not over yet,” I said... Or the colorful voice? I wasn't sure I could tell the difference.

The light burned away the darkness, but it only went so far. Part of the temple had been reclaimed by the light. There was rich brown wood, and painted statues, and sparkling gray stone, and green leaves and blue sky. But beyond that fifty foot radius, it was still dark. The strange deer ReMare was gone, but the twelve that had come out of the markers were still there. “My comrades... My friends...” Both me and not me said, “I am sorry.” I was sorry they were in this state. Sorry I couldn't protect them from the blots. Sorry I couldn't have prevented all of this from happening.

Sorry I hadn't been able to stop Benten.

Simultaneously not sure who Benten was.

I drew the Prism Sword.

I ran at the ReMares.

They didn't stand a chance, these monochrome versions of monsters I had defeated before. Not against Bright. They tried, attacking me, swarming me, but I was like a red hot knife to candle wax. I was the wind. I was sunlight. I was grace, beauty, and color. I danced through them, and the ink sizzled and released the spirits trapped inside.

And then I stood there, in front of the temple, as darkness receded. Color returned to more of the temple grounds and to the people who had been trapped there.

I looked to the twelve floating globes of light. “I still need your help. What will you?” I asked, feeling the colorful voice behind my words still. One by one, the globes of light floated towards me. As I touched them, I thanked each one of them, and they became Memokas once more.

I put them in my belt, and knelt next to Rou.

“Ki. Wake up.” I said, putting an armored hand on his shoulder.

Rou's eyes fluttered open. They flickered between black and pink, before settling on pink. “So. We're alive? You remembered?”

“We're alive,” I said, and the words echoed rainbows in my ears.

“I see,” he said, and stood up.

“I need to stop her. Before He wakes up. Can you take care of things here?” I asked, only half understanding the words that I was saying. Before Akito woke up? Before Nisei? Before Rou? The memory of a glowing white snake flickered in my memory and just as quickly was gone.

He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. “Yeah. I'll do what I can.”

“I am sorry. You've been working so hard for me,” I said, touching his face gently. He leaned into my hand.

“It's been hard,” he said roughly. “It's not fair.”

“I know.” I took a deep breath. There was a dark pulsing to the west, towards the ocean. “I have to go after her. I can feel her, and if I can feel her, so can He. Stay safe. Keep them safe," I said. “I love all of you so much.”

He nodded, and put his hand over mine, squeezing it. I turned, pulling away from him and heading to the darkened road. Each step I took, color returned in my foot prints, spreading like pools of water, burning away the ink.

It seemed like it should have taken hours to get to the source of all of this, but time and distance are strange in the Under. I arrived at the beach, and there was Shika, standing tall, staring out at the surf.

“So. You found a way,” she said quietly.

“I'm here,” I said, echoing light in my head.

“My executioner, it seems,” she said, not turning around.

“Cut the melodramatic shit,” I said, and that time it was all me, no lights dancing in my mind. I did get a sense that the presence was laughing at my choice of words though.

Shika looked back at me sharply.

“You are willing to destroy all of the humans and all of the spirits in this town, to feed the blots,” I said, and the echos of colors were back. “You have broken me again and again. You have thrust this town into darkness. I will not allow it.”

“My sentence,” she said. “Well. Then I demand a trial by combat.” With a smooth sweeping motion, she turned around.

I shifted the grip on my Prism Sword. “As you wish.” I rushed her. With a lazy flick of her wrist, blots appeared in front of me. They barely slowed me down. As I got closer, I jumped into the air, raising my sword up above me. I yelled, and threw all my weight into swinging my sword down on her.

And her arm came up and swatted me away. All of that momentum turned against me, throwing me to the sea.

Just before I hit the ocean, my wings activated, and I landed on my feet. The waves turned sea green and murky where they touched me, tugging at my feet, making my footing uneasy.

She wasted no time. Suddenly she was over me, looming and strange, and a ping of fear hit me in my gut.

_I should run. I should run. Facing her means death. I have to go. I don't want to disappear._ My thoughts ran through my head like a heartbeat, racing and afraid.

_Easy, easy. I am not dead. We are here. We will defeat her. We will get our memories back,_ came another line of thoughts, like a shimmering prism, light waves steady and stable.

Shika reached for me, and I dove out of the way, rolling in the surf, and into the sand. I got up on one knee, and slashed at her with my sword. She moved away so gracefully it felt like she was floating slowly. Surely I should have been able to hit her.

_Steady, steady,_ said the rainbow voice. I waited. _Now!_

I slashed at Shika's leg, and a bright white gash appeared on her leg. She made an angry noise, and grabbed at me. I tried to roll away again, but she caught me by the leg. She picked me up, my three sheer capes falling over my head. She flung me away, and I slammed into a pier before my wings could activate.

I pushed myself up, getting to my feet awkwardly, fighting with my cape so that it fell where it was supposed to be. And there she was again. Looming. I suppressed a shudder and launched myself at her again. She made a motion as if to swat me away again and just missed as I circled her to avoid getting hit. I feinted towards her again and she stepped back.

Shika grabbed at me, this time catching me up in a solid grip. My arms were pinned to my sides, and I couldn't move. I kicked my feet without gaining purchase. I could tell that touching me burned her hands. It had to hurt. But she ignored it, and stared into my multifaceted rainbow eyes. “You don't even realize, do you? What you are? You are an abomination. ReMares are a natural evolution, but you. You broke the laws. And you should be punished. That is your sentence. How do you plead?”

“I don't know what you're talking about!” I shouted, squirming in her grasp. I felt a distant pang of guilt that I didn't understand. I ignored it. All I had to do was get an arm free so I could swing my sword. All I had to do was get free, and she was close enough to attack. She was strong, but I was BRIGHT.

“You don't even know what you did, do you?” she asked, bringing me closer to her face. “A ReMare didn't take those memories, you know.” She squeezed me, and I felt the light dim. “Remember!” she commanded.

The light flickered, and then flared. And everything went white.

 

 


	38. Human

The little girl was out walking on the mountain again. She was supposed to be going to her grandmother's house. Her parents were busy, again. It was starting to feel like she couldn't remember the last time she saw them at home. Sure, she knew they were there, sometimes. But she had things to do too. A best friend to play with. Homework. Games. They were busy. So was she.

Both of them were at work today, and Meiko had music lessons and juku classes until late.

The mountain was more interesting than her grandmother's house. She wanted to climb trees and look at bugs.

As long as she eventually showed up, her grandmother didn't mind.

The butterfly was back.

“Hi, there,” the girl said cheerfully. She knew it was the same butterfly every time. It was beautiful. It was as big as two of her hands with it's wings spread, and it glowed faintly. “I was hoping I'd find you!”

The butterfly landed on the girl's nose, making her giggle. “That tickles!” she said, and the butterfly fluttered over to a nearby leaf, and landed, wings spread. “I should name you, don't you think?”

“I have a name, little one,” came a soft, amused voice, that sounded like rainbows and sparkles.

“You can talk!” the girl squealed.

“Yes,” the butterfly said.

“What is your name?” she asked.

“I am called the Bright Lady,” the butterfly said.

“Oh! That's pretty. Nice to meet you, Bright Lady-chan,” the girl said, bowing.

“It is nice to meet you too, Mei,” the butterfly said.

“People call me Meiki now,” she said, puffing out her chest. “It was Meiko's idea! She's Koda Mei, and I'm Kimura Mei, so if we add the first character from our family name to our names, we become Meiko and Meiki! Isn't that cute? She's so cute! I wish you could meet her too.” She hugged her knees and rocking back and forth as she chattered.

“Meiki. I like that,” the butterfly said, amused. “I would like to meet your friend someday.” She paused for a moment. “People call me Bright Lady, but you may also call me Chou.”

“Like a butterfly!”

“Exactly.”

The scene shifted, and the girl was gone. Instead, there was a white snake, coiled on a stone, glowing faintly in the moonlight. Ink patches were splattered on trees, dripping off of branches. “We don't have much time, Chou. There are spirits dying. My mountain is covered in this. People have abandoned it. Animals have abandoned it. It's dying.”

“I do not think your answer is the correct one. I am afraid that it might also mean death,” the butterfly said.

“You don't know that!” The snake reared his head back.

Chou paused, and fluttered her wings sadly. “You already did it to yourself, didn't you?”

“Do you think I would ask my friends to do something that I wouldn't do?” the snake asked, shaking it's head, and I noticed that it's eyes were dark and inky black.

“Oh, Benten...” The butterfly lowered her wings, as if defeated.

“Do you not see? I have a body. I am real, in a way I wasn't before. And I am strong.” Benten shimmered, and his form became humanoid, glowing white. His eyes and his mouth remained snakelike. “Shika is only alive because I inoculated her. Maneki too. It's such a small amount of blot, and it protects us from the ill effects of the ink everywhere. Humans do it too, you know. They get viruses. They kill them and they put them in their bodies and it makes them stronger.”

“I hope it is as you say,” Chou said softly.

The scene changed. It was sunny, and the girl was playing in the road near her grandmother's house. This time, Meiko was with her. They had rode their bicycles over, and had abandoned them at the side of the road to draw with chalk.

“That's a pretty butterfly, Meiki,” Meiko said, peeking at the girl's drawing.

“She's my friend! Her name is Bright Lady Chou-chan!” The girl said proudly, stringing all the names together like it was all one thing. “I play with her sometimes on the mountain. I want you to play with her too!”

“There's a butterfly like this on the mountain?” Meiko asked. “Don't butterflies kind of have a short life span?”

“Not this one! She's magic, I think,” she said. “She's kind of glowy, like this.” The girl drew colorful lines with chalk around the butterfly to show what she meant.

“Magic?” Meiko asked.

“Yeah!” The girl said.

“Don't be silly. Magic's not real,” A boy with fancy clothes and fancy hair said. He looked to be about seven as well. There was smaller boy in matching finery toddling after him.

“Rude!” the girl said, hands on her hips. Meiko grabbed onto the back of her shirt, hiding behind her.

“Akkun, I wanna see a glowing butterfly,” the younger boy said.

“It's not real, Togo. She's making it up,” Akito said, his arms crossed and a smirk across his face.

A water balloon came out of nowhere and splatted Akito in the back of the head. He spun around in shock.

Another boy, thin and lanky, was stopped on his bicycle. His basket was full of brightly colored water balloons. “Meiaki, don't be a jerk!”

The water had splashed away the drawing of the butterfly. The girl frowned and turned against the boy on the bike. “You ruined my drawing!”

He looked shocked. “I'm sorry! I was trying to help!”

“Ha! Jiro-kun is the jerk!” Akkun said, sticking his tongue out at the other boy.

“I'm trying to help! Listen, I believe you about the butterfly, okay? I saw a fox the other day,” Jiro said.

“So? A fox is a fox!” Akkun said, although he sounded interested despite himself.

“Mama said foxes are magic,” Togo said.

“Well, this one definitely was. It was pink,” Jiro said.

“Aren't foxes usually red?” Meiko asked quietly.

“It was magic, duh,” Jiro said, puffing out his chest proudly. “It was glowy too.”

“Where did you see it?” the girl asked.

And the scene shifted again.

The girl was playing in the street again, this time alone. The butterfly landed on a nearby mailbox. “Hi!”

“Hello, Meiki,” the butterfly sounded sad.

“What's wrong?” the girl asked. “Are you sick?”

“No... Well. Probably.”

“Then we should go to the doctor! My mama's sick, and daddy has to go to the doctor with her all the time,” the girl said, her expression grim and determined.

“I don't think there are doctors for spirits, little one. And... The one who thinks he is, is making a mistake, so I don't think that will help right now.”

“The one who thinks he is what?”

“A doctor. He's... a friend of mine. We've been friends for a very very long time, but he did something bad.”

“Like what?”

“Do you know why your mother is sick?”

“She's got remembering problems, I think. She forgot that she's my mama. But daddy says she still loves, me, she's just gotta get better first,” she said slowly. It sounded matter of fact, but brief images of her throwing tantrums and crying and clinging to her dad and throwing fits when she had to leave the hospital visiting hours flickered across the scene.

“The spirits in this city are sick, too. And some of them thought they could make themselves better by taking some of what was making them sick and putting it in their body.”

“Like a flu vaccine?” she asked. “Those hurt.”

“Yes, like that. But the thing that's making them sick isn't a virus. It's a poison. Or a parasite. It's not making them better. It made them angry and it makes them take people's memories away,” the butterfly said.

The girl was quiet as she contemplated that. “Like mommy?”

“Maybe. I don't know. I'm sorry.”

“Why?” she demanded.

“Why?” the butterfly fluttered, taken aback by a child's angry question.

“Why are they taking memories?” she demanded again, her small fists balled up in anger.

“It... Do you know how the sun gives plants life?”

“What?” The girl asked impatiently. “Yes? Why?”

“Human memories for spirits are like the sun. They give us life and make us strong. But it doesn't hurt the sun, right?” The butterfly explained.

“So?”

“So when a spirit has the parasite in them, it makes them like a hungry sun eating monster. And then there's no sun.”

“That sounds scary,” the girl said, her anger faltering into fear.

“It is,” The butterfly agreed.

The girl frowned, “So... What if somebody fights the monster? Like in Magic Yankee Super Fight Go?”

“Like in... Oh. That show with the heroes you like to talk about. I... do not think it works that way.”

“That's what I'd do if there was a monster. Just POW!” She kicked the air. “Like that!”

The butterfly laughed. “I'll keep that in mind, Meiki.”

“Don't laugh at me! I'm serious,” the girl said, hands on her hips.

“I'm sorry. I am not laughing at you. You just cheered me up a little, that's all. Thank you,” The butterfly said, and flew away.

The butterfly sat on a flower, fluttering her wings slowly. A pink fox was sitting upright at attention, watching carefully.

“I don't really want to do it, Bright Lady, but I've gotten so weak. We need to do something, or we're just going to prove Benten right.”

“I know, I know.” The butterfly sighed. “I was told recently that we should fight them.”

“Who told you that? And more importantly, how would we do it?” The fox asked.

“A little girl who has been playing on my mountain a lot. She's an awfully brave child,” the butterfly said. “I don't know how. She suggested superheros, but...” She fluttered her wings. “That's silly.”

The fox was quiet for a moment. “It could work.”

“What?”

“I mean it! I saw Sen clearing away ink with a pulse of light. It burns it. It seems to take a lot of energy. I can't do it at all. It might only work because she's so old.”

“I am older than her, pup.” The butterfly said, pretending to be offended.

“I'm not a dog.”

“Kit then.”

“If you're so old, you might be able to do it too. Right?” he said, utterly unapologetic.

“Rascal,” The butterfly said fondly. “I think so. I will try.”

“I'll try and find away to amplify it, so that us younger spirits can use it too.”

“Please.”

And the scene changed again, and the girl was in the woods again, sitting in the crook of a tree, crying. The bushes rustled.

"Bright Lady Chou-chan?" The girl called, rubbing her eyes. "Is that you?"

A boy appeared instead. Everything about him glowed white. his simple shirt and pants, his hair, his skin, were all as white as snow. his eyes were jet black, and they made the girl feel wary. "Who are you?" she demanded, annoyed to be caught crying by some strange boy.

'You're her pet, aren't you?" he asked.

"I'm not a pet, I'm a girl!" she objected. She stuck her tongue out at him. “Rude!”

"You are then," he said, tilting his head.

"Are you a sun eating monster?" she asked, putting her fists up, ready to throw hands.

The boy frowned. "Is that what she told you?" he asked, sounding angry.

"She said her friend is going to eat everyone's memories. Like my mama's." She watched him warily.

He smiled suddenly, and strolled closer. "That's not a very nice thing to say about a friend, is it?" he asked.

The girl hesitated. "... No?" It didn't sound very nice at all.

"It sounds like she's lying. Sometimes people get sick, you know. And they lose their memories. It happens. And it's rude that she'd blame me,” the boy said, coming closer. "I'm Benten. Would you like to be friends?" he held out his hand for the girl. "I could help your mama. And I could help you. That's more than what she's done, isn't it? All she does is talk."

The girl had started to reach out to the boy, but his voice was getting angrier and angrier. She pulled back. "You're scary!" she said angrily, and scrambled back through the crook of the tree, hopping to the ground and tearing through the forest in a blind run. She had to get home. All she had to do was get home, and he'd leave her alone.

She slipped in a patch of something wet and slick. Her hands caught the ground, and stung, bleeding a little. She glanced back and saw her cute sky blue shoes covered in thick black ink. The ink bubbled up a little, and a deer person pulled itself out of the ink. It was very tall, and very bright, purple light, with small black splotches across its back, and a black nose.

The girl froze, and slowly crawled away backwards,

The butterfly appeared, and flashed brightly in the deer's face. The deer cried out, and became a small faint globe of purple light, the ink splashing to the ground.

The snake boy appeared. “Shika!” He cradled the orb gently in his hands. It flickered weakly. His head whipped around to glare at the girl and the butterfly. “What did you do, Bright Lady?”

“She was going to kill this girl!” The butterfly fluttered angrily between them.

“She was just going to eat a little bit of her memory,” The snake said, wheedling. “The girl wouldn't have missed it, and you nearly killed Shika. You're lucky I got here in time.” He made a little motion with his hand, and black ink appeared in a small sigil. It attached to the spirit, and the deer lady began to reform.

“Run!” the butterfly shouted.

The girl screamed and scrambled to her feet, running wildly.

"Follow me," the butterfly said, flying ahead.

The girl did. And for a while, it seemed like she was making headway. The sounds of the deer monster moving through the forest faded away. The girl paused briefly, breathing hard.

"Don't stop!" the butterfly called.

The girl nodded, grim and fierce. She ran.

And she fell.

The butterfly dove after her, but she didn't have hands, she couldn't grab her. The girl tumbled into the ravine.

The butterfly landed on her, and was relieved that the girl's chest rose and fell.

The glowing white snake boy appeared, walking up to the girl.

"Benten! Stop!" the butterfly called. "Please! She is my friend!"

"I thought I was your friend, Chou. But it seems I am a monster." he smiled and reached for the girl. Chou fluttered away, avoiding his touch. Benten cradled the girl's head and brushed a lock of hair out of the girl's face. "She has such beautiful memories, don't you think?” The girl went gray and lifeless. He dropped her to the ground carelessly, anger in his voice now. “It's such a shame you've made her useless. If she wasn't injured, she'd recover. She's dead."

It seems odd for a butterfly to scream, but this one did, and light flared from her, burning the air.

The boy hissed, and shifted his body, as if curling up. Ink burst from the ground, wrapping around him. It crumbled under the light, but it protected him. And as it fell away, a patch of glowing white skin on his face peeled away, revealing black scaly ink.

“No!" The butterfly cried, and landed on the girl's body. It was still. Too still. "You... you ate her! This is your fault! I was trying to save her!"

"What's the problem? It's not like anyone is going to miss her memories. Her own mother didn't even know she existed.” The snake shrugged.

"You monster!"

"Is a snake a monster? Or a wolf? Or a human? It is nature's way to feed on others.” Benten turned. "You can either be strong and consume, or be weak and die."

"I will stop you, Benten," the butterfly said.

"Oh please. Right now you look like a snack. It's only because I am fond of you that I haven't already eaten you." The snake waved a hand dismissively as he walked away.

"I will save you, Benten," she said again.

"Which is it?" he shook his head, laughing a little.

"Both."

The snake stopped walking. He turned around. And quick as a flash, he had grabbed the butterfly in his hand, crushing it.“You are nothing! This girl is nothing.” He dropped the crumpled butterfly, which became a flickering globe of light as she fell to the girl's chest.

The surrounding area darkened, the color fading. The snake walked away, hands in his pockets.

The globe of white light slowly faded, and disappeared.

And the girl coughed once. Again. And gasped for breath, her chest moving again. Color returned to her body, and the surrounding area.

The girl sat up slowly, her skin shimmering with light. She tentatively touched her head, and yelped in pain. She looked at her fingers. “Blood...” She blinked in surprise when she heard her own voice. “How did this happen?” She stood up, and swayed dizzily. “Not good. She... She had a phone.” She patting her own pockets and pulled out a small phone, a thick chunky one with only three buttons, bright orange and meant for children. “Home... or... No... Her grandmother's.” She pressed the button and shakily brought it to her ear.

“Hello? Mei-chan? an old woman's voice answered the phone. The girl's memories told her that it was her grandmother.

“Hello. Mei fell near the shrine. Can you come get her?”

“What happened? Is she alright?” The voice was terrified now.

“She... I'm fine. But dizzy. I don't think I can make it home by myself,” she said.

“We'll be right there! Don't move!”

The girl slumped and stared at her hands. They shimmered slightly. She sat there entranced until she heard someone shouting “Mei! Mei!” She looked up, alarmed, and her skin stopped shimmering.

“Here!” the girl called back.

A couple of adults appeared, bandaging her head and scooping her up and bringing her home.

The memories shifted again.

She had to get out of here. She was able to manage to act normally, enough to fool her family and friends, but she was trapped. She had tried to leave the girl's body. It didn't seem right to keep pretending that she was something she wasn't. But as hard as she tried, she was stuck. She had to find help. And after falling in the mountains, the girl's grandmother kept closer tabs on her. It wasn't until a school art field trip to the mountains that she was able to slip away. She ran through the brush until she found a silver pond, where the river began. “Sen!” she shouted. “Sen! I know you're here!”

A silver crane appeared. “I did not think any humans knew my name.”

“It's me! Bright Lady,” the girl said, and the crane tilted her head. “Chou!”

“I do not know why you think this is okay to joke about, little girl. The Bright Lady is my friend, and she passed away recently. How do you even know her name?” The crane asked, her tone stern and angry.

“I didn't die! I got stuck!” The girl held up her hands and concentrated, and her skin glowed, shimmering in the afternoon sun. “I need help! This girl fell and... she...” The girl got choked up. She shook her head and continued. “Benten crushed me. And my light fell on this girl. And now I am her and I don't know where she is or how to get out or anything. Please.”

The crane stared at her for a long time. “It is you...”

“Yes!”

The crane stepped forward and touched the girl's forehead with the tip of her beak. There was a ripple of silver light, and then the crane stepped away. “I... I've never heard of this happening before but... The girl's soul has passed on. The body has decided that your spirit is now her soul. There's nothing you can do.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” The girl's voice rose in panic.

“You've become a human. The only way out of that body is the same way the girl left it.”

“I can't just.... I can't kill her! I don't want to kill anybody, and she's just a little girl.” The girl sounded horrified, putting her hand over her mouth like she wanted to hurl. That was a new feeling. As a spirit she had never felt it before. Being a human was strange.

“She's already dead,” The crane said reasonably. “Although I understand your fear. I also do not know where human souls go when they pass on. Facing mortality for the first time in your very long life must be strange.”

“No... No. I'll figure something out. I'll live as her if I have to,” she said. She hesitated. “If... If you see Ki, can you ask him to help me? He was trying to do something for me before.”

“He's a brat.”

“He's smart, and he's stronger than he pretends. He doesn't want to be corrupted by blots. I need his help.”

“I'll do what I can,” Sen said, reluctantly.

“Meiki! Are you there? Get back to your group!” an adult called. The girl immediately made her skin stop shimmering, and ran back over to her classmates.

I was back in Shika's grip, my breathing getting shallow, my heart racing. I had stopped struggling as the memories overtook me. I stared down at Shika's hands. “What was the purpose of making me remember?”

“You are a dead thing, and you should not be. You stole a human body, and you've used it's power to destroy my kind. And you personally tried to kill me, butterfly. I want you to know what you've done when I return the favor,” Shika said, tightening her grip on me.

I looked up at her. “Benten has poisoned you, and poisoned himself. And you've spread that poison all over this city. If what happened to me is a crime, I will atone for it by removing the blight that taints this place!”

“You talk awfully big for someone who is trapped and can't get out,” Shika said.

“Let me go. You don't want this,” I said, stubbornly.

“Alright,” Shika said. “You're right. I don't. I'm very sorry.”

“Well?” I demanded when she didn't release me.

“Did you really think that would work? I came this close,” she squeezed me tighter and I gasped for air, clawing at her hands, “to dying because of you. And because of Benten, I am like a god. Whether I destroy this town or not is entirely up to my whims.”

I took a breath, barely getting enough air, and expelled it with as much force as I could muster. “NO!” And with that, my light flared, too brightly for her to ignore. She cried out, and I tucked my knees in and kicked against her hands. I broke her grip and flipped to the ground, landing in a crouch with one leg out to the side. Shika was staring at her burned hands, for the briefest moment, and then she screamed and lashed out, kicking me. It knocked me back, and I rolled a few feet. I popped back up into a crouch. When she tried to attack again, her massive hands swiping down at me, I had my sword up to block. She cried out as it cut into her. The ink on her hands was starting to crumble.

She clenched them and more ink covered the injuries. “I will punish you,” she said, and raised an arm, pointing at me. A crossbow of ink and purple light formed on her forearm. She shot bolts of purple light at me, and I dove and tumbled out of the way. Where the bolt hit the ground, color sapped out of the yellow sand.

I tried to get close enough to hit her again, but she kept firing sprays of bolts, and pushing me back. She was quick, but it seemed she couldn't fire them quickly enough to actually hit me. It was a stalemate, but I also knew that my body had limitations. I couldn't fight like this forever. And if I slowed down and one of those hit me, it would be bad news.

“Look, your little friends are here for you,” Shika cooed. “I'll get them first. Shall I start with the other abomination?” She aimed higher, towards the edge of the beach.

“No!” I shouted, spinning around to warn them away. “Get out of-!”

No one was there.

Pain lanced through my shoulder, and I fell to my knees.

“Well, nobody ever said butterflies were smart,” Shika taunted.

I pushed myself to my knees. I felt a prickle of danger and forced myself up and forwards. A bolt landed where I had just been. I spun around to face her, grabbing my shoulder, hissing at the pain. My armor flickered. I focused, and it solidified again.

“You're fading fast, butterfly,” she said, and aimed her crossbow again.

All of my Memokas glowed brightly, in their places around my belt. “What are you doing?” I asked them, scrambling back as another bolt landed at my feet.

“Prism Gata Charge Complete!” The belt chimed, and the twelve Memokas became globes of light again, and reformed in front of me as a massive machine gun. Each of the barrels were made of different colored light. “Go, Go, Go!”

“What?!” Shika shrieked. “Traitors!” She shot at me again and I ducked out of the way, kneeling behind the Prism Gata. I aimed it at her. “Benten!” she shouted, and tried to sink back into the Under.

My belt announced “Vanishing Point!” I pulled the trigger, and instead of bullets, beams of light, the color of each of the spirits of the Memokas blasted out, spinning around each other, swirling light and color. It hit her in the face, burning away the ink.

All of the ink disappeared, and a purple orb of light floated up above the sand. The Prism Gata fell apart, all of the Memokas dropping to the ground. I let go of my armor, letting it disappear. Color rolled over the city, and all of the darkened places that I could see regained their color.

I picked up my Memokas and crawled over to Shika's spirit, reaching out for her. My hands trembled, and I pulled her close. “I'm sorry. I'll fix this,” I said, and pulled out a piece of origami paper, shakily drawing a sigil on it with the purple Memoka. I placed her on it and the lines flared. “I'll have Rou... I'll have him make you a real body later.”

I crawled away from the water, collapsing in a heap in the sand.

Memories were flooding my head. I could remember fighting ReMares in college with Meiko, Akito and Rou. It had been fruitless, as each monster had come back, stronger and more infected with ink. I remembered Togo. Friendly, sweet Togo. How hard it must have been for Akito. I remembered his long nights studying to push through university as fast as he could so that he could find a way to make Rou healthy. I remembered. I remembered projecting my spirit to give myself the Time Driver, fighting the red cheeked bear ReMare. I remembered laughing and playing and fighting with my friends. I loved them. I remembered how I had spent the last twenty two years pretending to be human. It didn't make those memories fake. I was not pretending to be their friend. I did truly did love all of them.

I remembered everything.

I remembered too much.

I couldn't stop tears flowing down my face, dripping into the sand. “I'm so sorry, Meiki... I tried so hard to forget... To bury those memories... To lie to us... so that you could live.” And the absurdity of apologizing to myself hit me. “Not like I've been doing a good job of pretending to be human lately,” I said bitterly to myself. And a fit of giggles rolled over me, which quickly turned back into tears. I pushed myself so that I was laying flat on my back, looking up at the clear blue cloudless sky.

I took a deep breath. “The others are going to be...” They had to be remembering things too. I wanted to be there with them, even if I felt like I didn't deserve to be there. I pushed myself up and stood up. All I wanted to do was rest. I felt sore, and tired, and heartsick.

I had to go to them.

I walked back to the arcade and found my bike. I turned it into the Synchrocycle, and drove up the mountain again, feeling like I was flying.

It felt so familiar.

I felt distant and strange as I parked my bike at the temple. The people there... they seemed bright, and far away. And they were crying and laughing and calling out to each other. Relieved to be alive. Overwhelmed by years of missing memories.

I stood near the edge of the festivities, watching them and feeling out of place.

A soft hand touched my shoulder. “Meiki, we've been calling for you,” Meiko said, smiling up at me. She was so beautiful, my heart ached.

Akito swooped in, taking my hands and spinning me around. “You did it! I don't know how but you did it!”

I laughed despite myself. “Don't, don't,” I protested, still laughing. He let me go, and I caught a nearby sign to keep my balance. “I'm barely standing.”

Rou appeared, hesitating, and catching my eye. He knew.

“How long?” I asked him.

“Not long. Either of us. I didn't find out until a couple of hours ago. Sen didn't tell Ki what had happened to you. She just said that the Bright Lady were still alive,” Rou said, running a hand through his hair. “When Nisei... Well. Things got said in the Under, and I didn't want Shika to take it out on him.”

“Take what out on me?” Nisei demanded, his eyebrows furrowed as if he had been presented with a stack of papers taller than him and was told it was a timed exam. “Dammit, I can't concentrate!”

“What's going on?” Meiko asked, glancing between me and Rou.

Rou shrugged. He knew because of Ki. There wasn't any helping it. But if I wanted to keep up this charade of being human, I could.

I didn't think it was fair.

And I was terrified that they would push me away for my deception.

I took a deep breath. “I am Bright.”

“And you're living in color?” Akito asked, mimicking my pose. It broke some of the tension I was feeling, and a single laugh escaped me, although I made myself stop before it turned into crying again. I shook my head.

“No... I... I'm like Nisei. Meiki... The real Meiki... She died a long time ago. She was six. A baby. I tried to protect her... but... but... ReMares were chasing her, and she fell...” I choked back a sob, and took a deep breath, plowing forwards. “When the ReMares call me Butterfly, it's... It's what I actually am. It's not because of Year. I am the Bright Lady.”

“So... you chose yourself as a champion?” Akito asked, raising his eyebrow, still grinning. I wanted to hug him for it. I didn't deserve him.

“Akito!” Meiko swatted him. “Be sensitive!"

“What? It's a legitimate question!” Akito objected.

“I... I guess I did...” I said, my voice wavering.

Meiko scowled at him and shoved him away, and turned to face me. “You've been our friend for decades. That hasn't changed.”

“Mei Brigade?” Rou asked.

“Mei Brigade.” Akito and Meiko echoed.

Nisei frowned and nodded. “Mei Brigade.”

They looked at me, waiting for me to join in. I rubbed tears from my eyes. “Mei Brigade,” I said, and choked back a sob. “Thank you.”

 

 


	39. Reunion

Someone screamed, and without thinking of tired bones or bruised muscles, I reached for my driver again. Another ReMare. It had to be another one, sneaking in while we were tired after a fight. I raised the driver to the sky and started to say “Hen-”

“Togo!” someone wailed, interrupting me.

“Mom,” Akito said, standing on his tiptoes. I lowered my arm, feeling sheepish, and glanced at Nisei. He was very pale. He looked like a cornered animal, his gaze darting around, his posture stiff and drawing into himself. “She remembered.”

Now that I thought about it, so had I. Little Togo, always tagging along with his brother. It seemed now like Nisei wore Togo's face awkwardly, like clothes that didn't fit. Togo had been easy-going and friendly, instead of stiff and shouty. Not of course, that Togo didn't get riled up when his brother pushed his buttons. I remembered many heated discussions about how much butter to put into a cake or the right ratio of different types of flour when baking bread. But that was with Akito. He'd rile up anyone.

Except now, he wasn't in the mood to rile up anyone. Akito looked at Nisei, his expression serious. “Would you come with me? To meet her? Please?” His voice was so soft and fragile.

Nisei nodded slowly, but he seemed reluctant to move.

“We'll all go,” Rou said. Akito was already moving.

I felt like I was being squeezed by Shika again, except instead of an inky hand, it was my own guilt. How dare I join in when it was my fault Akito's mother was suffering? I had put her sons into danger. I had put her through this.

Selfish.

I felt a warm hand on mine, and I looked up, startled out of my thoughts. Meiko smiled and squeezed my hand, and followed Akito. I went with her, reluctant to let go of her.

When Nisei didn't move to follow, Rou grabbed a fistful of his shirt and half dragged him after us.

“Mom!” Akito shouted, and ran to her as soon as he saw her. “Mom, are you okay?” Honatsu was crying, clinging to a shocked Katsumi.

“How could I forget my baby?” Honatsu sobbed, shaking Katsumi, as if she expected her to have the answer. “Poor Togo!”

Akito gently pried her off of Katsumi, “It wasn't your fault, Mom. It was the ReMares.”

“And I let you run around chasing after those monsters!” Honatsu grabbed his shirt, looking like she might drown.

“Mom, I had to. For Togo,” Akito said, patting her back, “And everyone. Besides, when have I done what I'm told?”

“Togo...” Honatsu had spotted Nisei, and pulled out of Akito's embrace to take an unsteady step towards him. “You're alive?” Rou let go of Nisei, shoving him forward a few steps. He met her eyes, and looked away. Honatsu reached forward and gently touched his face. “But...”

Nisei had such an intense look of concentration as he stared back at her. “I am here,” he said at length, his voice breaking.

Honatsu threw her arms around him, sobbing. Nisei froze, his arms at his sides. After a moment, he slowly raised a hand and patted her back.

“Mom?” Rou asked, staring at Katsumi expectantly. “Do you remember me?”

She had been straightening her shirt, and she stopped abruptly. “I don't want to go into this again, Rou. Not now.”

“Why?” Rou's voice sounded raw. Meiko let go of my hand to put a hand on his shoulder.

“It must not have been Shika,” I said softly, “I'm sorry, Rou. I know you were hoping...”

Rou shot me a heated glare that withered my words. “What do you know about parents?”

I flinched. I didn't. Not really. I had been born when a group of lost travelers had stopped to bury their comrade, several thousand years ago. A grave was marked, and a person remembered. And there I was. Not long later, there was trading post, and then a temple, and then a town, and much much later, a city. My city.

“She has parents,” Meiko said quietly. “They moved to Tokyo for her mom's health.”

“They did?” I asked, surprised. Why had I thought they still lived at our old apartment? Well. That was an easy question. ReMares. “I had forgotten...” Was it even fair of me to think of them as mine? I had lived with them for a few years, and knew how much I... Meiki... had stressed over her mother's memory loss. I felt it like it had been my own loss, as keen as a blade.

Rou huffed irritably.

“Rou, I mean it. I don't want to do this. Because of them.” Katsumi tilted her head at Honatsu and her boys.

“We should call your father!” He'll be so happy to hear that you're back!” Honatsu had dried her tears and starting to sound excited. She pulled out her cellphone.

“That's a bad idea, Mom,” Akito said, plucking her phone out of her grasp.

“He's his father! He's _your_ father. Show him respect,” Honatsu scolded.

“I will when he earns it,” Akito said, waving his hand in refusal.

“He knows,” Nisei said, pulling away from her. She stared at him in shock.

“He does?”

“Yes,” Nisei said slowly. I was not sure he was telling the truth or not. Senator Meiaki had been in league with Shika, and without meeting him it would be impossible to tell if that had only been because of her influencing his memories, or if he had joined her on his own free will. He must at least remember Togo. Whether or not that was a good thing was yet to be determined.

“Well, I still think...” Honatsu started.

“No,” Nisei said sharply.

“He's in college, let him do what he wants. He's not a baby,” Akito said.

“If it makes you feel any better, Rou, I think I believe you,” Katsumi said, glancing away from the reunited family, and crossing her arms.

“You do?” Rou's eyes were shiny.

“At this point, I think I'd be an idiot not to,” she said, sighing.

“You passed that point a long time ago,” Rou muttered, and rubbed the vulnerable expression off his face.

“Watch it, boy,” Katsumi said, putting a hand on her hip. A hint of a smile crossed her face despite herself.

“It means a lot. Thank you,” Rou said quietly.

Katsumi nodded. “We'll talk later.”

“You're in college? Do you have a dorm? You should move back in. No sense paying for those cramped little rooms. Oh! And we need to go clothes shopping too, and-” Honatsu continued, having recovered from Akito and Nisei's rebellion.

Nisei pulled away roughly. “I'm NOT!”” Both Akito and Honatsu stared at him. Nisei lowered his voice. “I have to go.” And with that, he turned and fled, barreling into people who were slow to get out of his way.

Akito followed him for a few steps, but gave up quickly.

“What did I say?” Honatsu looked horrified.

“Don't push him so hard, mom. He's had a difficult time. Honestly, I'm surprised he even agreed to meet you. He's kind of been like an angry cat,” Akito said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“But why? What's wrong with him?” Honatsu asked.

“He's... That ReMare stuff still happened to him. He's not the same person,” Akito said, wryly. “Give him time. He's still a good kid.”

“I'll go after him,” I offered, wanting to get away. I loved these people, but I felt like an outsider and a liar.

“Are you sure?” Akito asked, “I'm pretty sure he'll find his way back to us when he's hungry.” There was concern under his flippant words and I wanted to push it away. “He must be confused. I... I understand a little,” I said.

“I'll come with you,” Meiko offered.

“No. No, it's okay,” I said, and she gave me a look like she thought I was planning something dumb. Maybe I was. But still, to reassure her, I added, “I'll meet up with you guys later, okay? Promise.”

She nodded, and I took off for my bike. It might take a long time to find him. He could be difficult to catch when he wanted to be. But as soon as I got down to the base of the mountain, I heard him shouting. I followed the sound of the sound, to catch Summer dealing the finishing blow on some blots that were still loitering around. He dropped to his knees and stared at the inky mess on the ground. I climbed over my bike and took a step towards him.

He dropped his transformation. “What do you want?”

“To be here,” I said simply.

“Why?” he demanded, clenching his fingers around a fistful of grass and pulling. “So you can drag Togo up the mountain to be a good little human son?”

I dropped to the ground next to him. “Do you want me to?” I asked.

“No!” He flung the grass forward, and the blades drifted to the ground.

“Then, no,” I said, and was quiet for a long moment. He glanced over at me, and I sighed. “Honestly, I ran away.”

“You?” Nisei asked, as if it was ridiculous.

“Me,” I agreed.

“They're your friends,” he said.

“Yours too,” I countered.

He shook his head, struggling to put things into words. “They just... I remember being Togo. It would be very easy to be him and not me. I am afraid, because that is who they want.”

“I understand,” I said.

“Like you could!” He scowled and stood up, stomping away from me.

“I have been pretending to be Meiki for twenty years,” I said, and he stopped in his tracks. “I hid what I am for so long from even myself... I had forgotten.”

Nisei turned, eyeing me suspiciously. “What do you mean?”

“I said it earlier, didn't I?”

“I was distracted. Suddenly remembering a whole life is... distracting.” Nisei crossed his arms. “What are you?”

I gave a very bitter laugh. “We are the same, Nisei. I am a very old spirit who stole a human's life.”

“You are... Who are you? Did you kill her?”

“Who... at this point it's almost difficult to answer. Bright. The Bright Lady. Chou. Meiki. Year.” I stood up. “And no. But I couldn't save her either. She was running from Shika. And Benten caught her.”

“Don't say his name!” he snapped, his eyes wide and teeth bared.

At the same time, I understood his fear and also rejected it. “I suspect he already has his attention on me. If... If we are to save this city, I'll have to fight him. I have to save him.”

“Him?” Nisei asked, like I had suggested saving the dirt from his shoes.

I nodded. “I've got to try. He was my friend once.”

He was quiet for a long moment. “Why are you telling me all of this?? Why not confide in the others?”

That stung. “Because, I thought you'd understand, a little. And you asked. I thought I wouldn't have to pretend,” I spoke slowly. “Because you're my friend too.”

He was quiet for a long moment. He started to say something, hesitated, and said, “There's a ReMare nearby. I will take care of it. Do you want to help?”

I assessed my strength. I was tired and sore, but I was quickly recovering. I had spent time at my home territory, the shrine, and I wasn't trying so hard to be human anymore. I could fight. “Let's go.”

He led the way, walking along the side of the road. He stopped when we reached a small fruit stand. It was covered with large handmade signs for watermelons and the huge Asian pears that our area was famous for. By right, it should have been empty. Pears and watermelons weren't in season, and while persimmons and a number of citrus fruits were, it was still New Year's Day.

Despite all that, I was not very surprised to see a little old lady with a hunched back and a large floppy hat sitting in the stall, calling out “Welcome!” despite having no wares. Oara was a mixed up place, and the whole situation screamed ReMare.

“Here,” Nisei said, stopping.

“Right,” I said. I put my hand on the Time Driver. “Come on out!”

“Hello, dear. Would you like some pears?” The old lady asked.

“Oh, um. No, sorry. I'm looking for somebody, that's all,” I said, ducking my head to her. “Good afternoon.”

“Your voice sounds familiar. Are you that girl on the radio? Meiki-chan?”The old woman leaned forward to peer at me. “I listen to you girls every morning.”

“Thank you,” I said, fidgeting with my braid. I wanted to talk to talk to her about the radio station, because it was fun to meet fans. I wanted to run, because I wasn't who she thought I was. Instead, I felt awkward. “Have you seen anything odd?”

“She's not going to remember,” Nisei reminded me, his arms crossed. He also looked like he wanted to be somewhere else.

“Shh, I know that. Be polite,” I hissed at him.

He took that to heart and straightened up before bowing deeply. “Excuse me. Good afternoon.”

“What was that?” The old woman asked good naturally, although I couldn't imagine that she hadn't heard him, even if she was deaf.. He was a great deal louder than me.

“Please pardon my rudeness, ma'am,” he said, bowing again.

The old woman laughed. “I like you. Come here, boy.” She came out from behind the stand and limped over to a picnic table. She patted the surface. “Sit. I will be back.”

Nisei obeyed awkwardly.

“She likes you,” I informed him, amused.

“We're not here for that,” Nisei said.

“I'll go look,” I said.

“I'll go too,” Nisei said, and stood back up, but the old lady returned with a tray of tea.

“No, no. Sit, sit,” she said, ushering him back to the table. He gave me a panicked look.

I had to rescue him. I couldn't just leave him on his own. “Ma'am, we really do need to be looking-”

“Meiki, dear. You sit too,” she said, pulling me over insistently. “Now, young man. What is your name? Introduce yourself.”

“I'm Meian Nisei. I am a university student and an intern at the radio station,” Nisei recited formally. “It is an honor to meet you.”

“Nisei-kun is it? Very good. You may call me Granny. You remind me of my grandson. Spitting image of him. So polite. You take care of him, you hear?” She looked at me sternly.

“Yes, of course,” I said, bowing to her from my seat. “I'll do my best.”

“Ma'am, I-” Nisei started.

“Granny,” she corrected him.

“I'm not Togo!” He snapped.

“Togo? No, of course not. Didn't you say your name was Nisei-kun?” She looked confused. “My memory isn't that bad yet!” She laughed.

“I did,” he said, slightly mollified, but some suspicion remained on his face. “I'm not your grandson.”

“No dear,” she said gently, “but you remind me of him. Do you want to see a picture?” Without waiting for an answer, she pulled out a picture from her wallet. The young man was burly and his hair was buzzed short. The only similarity was a serious expression, especially in the eyes. “This is my little Yosuke.”

“He isn't little,” Nisei said reluctantly.

She gave him a mischievous grin. “Everyone is little when you're my age. He's a construction worker. Big voice. Very polite. He's getting married soon.”

“Is he visiting for New Year's?” I asked.

“What?” she asked, and frowned. “I suppose he will, but that's a long ways off.”

“It is New Year's Day today,” Nisei said.

“Don't be silly. It's September,” she said, laughing. “That's why I'm out here. It's pear season.”

“It's January, Granny,” Nisei insisted.

“It certainly isn't!” She started to sound irritated.

“Easy, Nisei,” I said. “It's not her fault. You don't like being pushed either.”

He grumbled, but dropped it. “I am sorry, Granny. Do you have a pear orchard?”

“Yes! Yosuke is always helping me during this season. He's such a good boy,” she said.

“I would like to see it someday,” Nisei said, carefully polite.

“I'd be happy to show you!” She beamed approvingly at him.

“Excuse me, I have to use the restroom,” I said, standing up and removing myself from the conversation. It was a lie, of course. One of the side effects of not being human, I suppose. There wasn't even a bathroom around here. But the lie gave me a chance to look around.

I made a wide circle around the little stand, keeping my eyes peeled for blots. Nothing. I sighed. The ReMare must have already oozed it's way back into the Under. I sighed and started walking back towards the roadside stand. The old lady was talking animatedly to Nisei, who was leaned forward in interest.

“Of course, our pears are the biggest. Almost as big as your head, they are,” she said.

“That is big,” Nisei said.

“I'm-” I started to announce my return, when I saw a dark shape rising up from within the fruit stand. “Nisei!”

He stood up abruptly, spinning to look where I was pointing. He growled “Henshin!” and stamped his driver.

It played it's transformation music, shouting, “SUMMER HOWL!” his sigil passed over him.

At the same time, I grabbed my driver and raised it up. “Henshin!” I swiped the Year Memoka across it. Shimmering white lights swirled around me, and my familiar armor appeared on me.

Summer launched himself over the fruit stand's empty display boxes with a roar.

“Oh my!” the old lady exclaimed, putting her hand to her heart.

I paused in my rush over to help Summer. “Sorry, granny. We'll take care of this,” I said. She nodded weakly.

Summer kicked the ReMare out of the fruit stand. It staggered back, and then stood up. The ReMare was very tall, with yellow and brown stripes across his lower body. He had large wings. His head was sort of squashed looking, and he had antenna. “Balibos does not approve of your actions, tanuki!”

Summer snarled, and warily approached, his nunchaku drawn and readied.

“I'm sure the feeling is mutual,” I said, stepping forward. The Prism Blade would take a little time. “What was it? Balibos?”

“That is this hornets name, yes. Balibos is very dangerous. Are you, by chance, both idiots? No, don't answer that. Balibos knows that the tanuki is. And you. You must be the butterfly. Very stupid, no?” Balibos said, clicking his mandibles and tilting his head, his hands on his hips.

“Shut up,” I said. The ReMares calling me butterfly had never bothered me before, but the fact that they had been calling me that for such a long time without me figuring it out until Shika had squeezed it out of me made me feel like just the idiot he described. I didn't like it. I ran forward, drawing back my arm to throw a punch at him.

And was stopped short by my cape. I glanced back at Summer, who had grabbed a fistful of the fabric. “Let go!” I demanded.

He shook his head, and pulled me back.

“At least the tanuki has the sense to be afraid of Balibos, now that he knows who he's messing with.” Balibos fluttered his wings and looked at his fingernails. They were very sharp, and a bright yellow that just screamed dangerous poison. “However, it's already too late, is it not?” And with that, he launched himself at us.

Summer pushed me out of the way, and took a dive to the opposite side. He spun and hit the hornet ReMare across the back. Balibos staggered, and buzzed angrily. Balibos regained his footing and turned around slowly and advanced on Summer.

I got back to my feet. The hornet ReMare was picking up speed as he approached Summer. Summer spun his nunchaku and shouted wordlessly at him. Balibos buzzed again and broke into a run. He jabbed his dangerously sharp hands at Summer, who gave ground in attempting to dodge them. I ran towards them and grappled the hornet monster from behind, getting my arms under his armpits. Balibos struggled against my grip, but I held firm. Summer put a hand over his own masked face and growled, before delivering a brutal spin kick to the ReMare. It sent the hornet sprawling. And then Summer shifted his momentum, and changed directions.

His foot caught me across the ribs, sending me flying back. I crashed into the side of the fruit stand, and had the air knocked out of me. I dropped to the ground.

"What the hell!" I demanded, between pained breaths, as I struggled to stand back up.

"AGGGH!" he responded, which was about as helpful as it usually was, which was not very. He turned his back to me and warily circled the ReMare.

"He's not your prey!" I said, annoyed. “I can help you!”

The ReMare got back up to his feet, rubbing out the dent in his inky form that Summer's foot had left. "The good-for-nothing tanuki is protecting you, butterfly. You should be grateful."

"Tch." Summer shook his head.

"He's got a funny way of showing it," I grumbled.

"He is very aware of exactly how dangerous Balibos is, isn't he?" The hornet laughed, and launched himself at Summer, jabbing his hand at the other rider. This time, he hit, and the blue, yellow, and orange of Summer's armor faded to ashy gray.

Just like the Forgotten.

“No... No! Summer!” I shouted, running forward.

Then the armor cracked, and fell apart, dissolving into dust.

And the ground lurched up as my boot caught something on the ground.

An arm caught mine before I hit the ground, and pulled me up. Summer was there, his armor shiny and colorful. He made a noise that sounded halfway between a roar and a rude laugh. I sighed in relief. He had shed his cicada skin to avoid the actual attack. I shoved him.

"Jerk. Alright, I get it," I said. "I'll be careful. Stop hitting me."

I thought about changing forms, but I was tired. They were tired. The spirits from my Memokas had aided me in creating the Prism Gatling which had helped me beat Shika. I couldn't ask more of them. Even Bright felt out of the question. I had recovered a great deal quicker than I had in the past but I was afraid if I pushed it I would crumble.

But getting into punching range of a ReMare that could turn make something Forgotten with his deadly sting was a recipe for disaster and definitely not a great idea. At least Summer had his cicada skin as an extra line of defense.

"Prism Charge, Complete!" my belt chimed, and I smiled grimly into my helmet. That would give me some range. I drew the blade, and the belt shouted "Prism Blade, Go, Go, Go!"

"I can sting too, bumble bee," I said, tilting my sword across my body to protect myself.

"Do not call Balibos a mere bumble bee! Balibos is a Giant Hornet!" the ReMare objected, and launched himself at me. I slashed at him, and he blocked with his bright yellow hands. He tried to knock my sword away, but I spun around him, avoiding his thrust. And Summer took the opportunity to smash his nunchaku into the ReMare's arm and back, before also putting some distance between him and the monster.

Balibos turned, and buzzed angrily. “This is nothing! Balibos eats bugs like you for breakfast!”

“It's too late for breakfast!” I countered. Stupidly. Why had I said that? Whatever. I ran at him again, and jumped into the air, driving my sword down into into his chest. The buzzing intensified and I could feel the vibrations right to my bones. He drew an arm back to impale me as well, but I flipped backward, pulling the Prism Blade out along with me. I landed on one knee, sword raised protectively in front of me.

Balibos put one hand over the bright white scarred hole in his chest, and his ink oozed and slowly filled in in, leaving behind a small white mark. While he was distracted, Summer howled and crashed into him, pressing the chain of his nunchaku against the hornet's neck, pulling against him. Bilabos pulled the chain away from his neck, struggling for a moment, before dropping suddenly down to the ground in a puddle of ink. And as soon as he was down, he reformed, using the momentum of jumping out of the Under to pierce into Summer's armor. Again, it went gray and crumbled, and Summer reappeared near me, breathing hard.

“Careful,” I said, and he snorted.

Balibos crossed his arms and shook his head. “Buzz, buzz, buzz.” He sounded disapproving. And then he was a blur of light and ink, running not at the two of us, but towards the old lady who was now puttering with one of her signs, having completely forgotten the ReMare in her presence.

“No!” I threw myself into motion. I had to stop him, but I was too far away. It felt like running in a dream, where I was always just out of reach of my target, no matter how hard I ran.

Summer was faster.

The Summer armor next to me crumpled into a discarded shell, and a bright sky blue blur appeared in front of the old woman, just as Balibos thrust his needle sharp hand forward.

The world fell silent, except for the beat of my heart racing in my chest.

There was a cracking sound as Balibos made contact with Summer's shoulder. Summer gasped.

And then I caught up, stabbing Balibos in the back and grabbing him by the wings and pulling him back and throwing him aside to get to Summer, who was sinking to the ground and then wasn't Summer, but Nisei, as his armor disappeared in a fragile glimmer of light. “No! Nisei! Please, no!” I held him. He still had color. He was still alive. That had to be a good sign.

There was a faint buzz behind me, and the sound of ink splashing. I glanced back. The ReMare had disappeared into the Under. “Nisei, we need to get out of here. Can you stand?”

He nodded weakly and pushed himself up. And immediately lost his footing, clutching at his shoulder. I caught him, and he yelled at the pain. This time I saw his injury. A small point on his shoulder was gray and colorless.

“Nisei, Nisei, no,” I said, panicking. I didn't want him to die. He was my comrade and even if he was an annoying pain in the ass, he was mine.

He hissed at the pain and took a peek at the injury. “Well. That is bad,” he said simply, and laughed feverishly. “At least my armor took the brunt of it.”

“Shush, no. I'll call the others,” I said, shifting slightly to clear my transformation and grab my phone. I called Akito. “Pick up, pick up. Aki, come on,” I pleaded as it rang, hoping he'd have signal at the top of the mountain.

“Is she okay?” Nisei asked, his eyes glancing in the direction of the old woman, although I doubted he could actually see her from this angle. He didn't have the energy to turn. I looked for him instead. She had picked up a couple of signs and carried them over to a small kei truck. The engine started and she pulled out onto the road.

“She's fine. She doesn't even remember it happening,” I said, and then Akito finally picked up. “Akito, please hurry, It's Nisei. We need help.”

“Whoa, whoa What's going on? We're on our way. Where are you?” I could hear the terrified energy behind Akito's voice, although he had the sense of mind to ask for more information.

“We ran into a ReMare, and... Nisei is hurt. We're near a fruit stand at the bottom of the mountain. Make...” I didn't want to say it. It was just rubbing it in. But we needed help fast. I took a deep breath. “Make a butterfly origami. It should be able to find me,” I said.

“Alright. We're on our way. Stay safe,” Akito said, and hung up on me.

I took another deep breath, trying to calm down. It didn't work.

“Balibos is an assassin. He wasn't the one who took Granny's memories,” Nisei said, slowly reaching up to touch his injury again. “If he had hit her, she would have died.”

“Why are you telling me this?” I demanded.

“Because. I... I think I want to protect her,” Nisei said. “And you understand.”

I wanted to object, to say that I didn't understand him jumping in front of an old lady we didn't know, but I did. I would have done the same. I had planned to do the same. “Idiot,” I said, directed at myself as much as it was directed at him.

“Yes,” Nisei agreed, and drew a ragged breath.

“You shouldn't talk. The others will be here soon, and you should spare your energy,” I said, dashing tears from my eyes.

He obeyed for a little while, and I kept a careful eye on his injury. “I can't help being angry at you,” he said, his voice oddly quiet.

“Me?” I asked, a flood of guilt washing over me. I should have been faster, I should have risked another form. I should have protected him.

“In his memory... You never needed help. You didn't let anyone else protect you,” he accused. “And now... It's different now.”

The words hit me like a punch. “I'm sorry,” I said. Selfish. Selfish Selfish. Selfish. I was selfish for dumping on him. Selfish for not trying harder, for not being able to protect him.

He raised up his uninjured arm and flopped it at my face like he was hitting me with a fish. I shook my head and blinked in confusion but otherwise accepted the boneless slap. “No. I am. I am... also happy. That I am not alone,” Nisei said. “That you trust me. That you trust Nisei.”

“Mei Brigade,” I said, my throat constricting. “We are a family.”

“Family, huh,” Nisei said softly. “I ran. Do you think Akito is angry with me?”

“Ask him yourself!” I said, demanding that he not fade out before Akito arrived. “He'll be here soon. Please get here soon.”

Nisei nodded and his eyelids lowered.

 

 


	40. Healing

I held Nisei, listening to his shallow breathing. And I talked. It was mostly silly nonsense, office gossip from the radio station, and things I should teach him to do when we go back to work. I don't know if he was listening or not, but it helped calm me down.

It felt like an eternity later when I finally heard the deep rumbling of motorcycles. Akito barely came to a stop before dismounting the Harvester and rushing over. Rou and Meiko were close behind. Akito dropped to his knees at my side. “Lie him down,” Akito ordered, and I did as I was told. “What happened?” he asked as he checked his pulse and breathing, and then looked at the wound.

“When I found him, he was fighting blots, and he said there was another ReMare in the area. We came over here, and talked to this old woman,” I said. “She left. She was fine, although we think a different ReMare got to her, because she thought it was September.”

“Slow down,” Meiko said, standing behind me and petting my hair. I leaned into her hand. “What happened after you talked to the old woman?”

“There was a big hornet ReMare. We fought... Nisei wouldn't let me close at first, because it was dangerous, I guess?”

“Balibos?” Rou guessed. I nodded. “He is. He's not very strong, but he's concentrated a lot of his power to the point where it's dangerous. He can turn people into Forgotten in one strike, but there's only so many times a day he can do it.”

“That's what this is?” Akito asked, looking at the wound. It didn't look like a cut, but there was a spot on Nisei's shoulder where his skin was gray. The gray spot fractured out like broken glass, but it didn't seem to be growing.

“It looks like it,” Rou said.

“I've never seen it in a concentrated area like this,” Akito said, sounding distant. Sometimes it was hard to believe that he was a doctor. Right now was not one of those times.

“I haven't either,” Rou said, leaning over us.

“He was in his armor,” I offered. “He said he thought it protected him from the worst of it.”

Akito sat back on his haunches. “That might be the case. He's stable enough where we can move him. Meiki-chan, are you okay?”

“Me?” I asked, surprised. “I'm okay.”

“Uh-huh,” he said, raising an eyebrow at me. He tossed me his jacket. “You're shaking like a leaf. It'll be alright. Jiro, help me get him into a side car.” The two of them carefully lifted Nisei up into one of the bikes turned sidecars.

Meiko reached down to take my hand, and helped me stand back up. I put Akito's jacket over my shoulders. He was right. Between shock and exhaustion, I was shaking. "Is he going to be okay?" I asked.

"I think so. I don't think it will spread as long as he's not around another ReMare," Akito said. "And we'll kick that Bali...” He tripped over the hornet's name “Bahababla's butt and he'll be fine!"

"Say that five times fast," Meiko murmured.

“Pass,” Akito said, crossing his arms in front of him in an X shape.

I hesitated. I didn't think he would be joking around with Nisei knocked out. “You're not angry?” I asked.

"Oh, I am furious," Akito grinned, baring his teeth. "That ReMare has another thing coming if he thinks that he can mess with my little bro without consequences."

"I meant at me," I said quietly.

"Why would he be angry at you?" Meiko asked.

"I couldn't protect him," I said, clutching Akito's jacket closer. It smelled like sugar, dry leaves and the wind. It was comforting, and I didn't deserve it.

Akito walked over to me. “Come here a second,” he said, and motioned for me to lean down. I obeyed. He dropped a fist on the top of my head gently. "Don't be like that. Don't think for a second that I wouldn't be just as upset if it was you that was knocked out like that." he opened his fist and pet the top of my head before turning back towards Rou and his bike. "Let's get him back to my place. We can rest and figure out what to do."

It didn't feel right, accepting his words, but I nodded, and stood up straight.

By the time I got back to the cafe, all of the fights I had been in the past day came rushing up to bite me in the butt. I held it together as I held the door open for Rou and Akito to carry Nisei into Akito's room. But when I walked in, I staggered. I managed to catch myself on one of the tables, and Meiko sidled up to me, supporting my other side.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

“I'm fine,” I said, and tried to stand up on my own again. My leg gave out from under me, and Meiko struggled to keep me standing.

"You're not fine. You've transformed a ton in the last day or so," Rou said, as he left Akito's room. "It's a wonder you've been conscious at all. You think you can make it upstairs?”

I nodded and took a few steps with Meiko's help, and then everything went dark. I was unsure what happened after that. I remembered shouting. I remembered hazy jostling.

When I woke up, I was on Rou's soft leather couch, with a stack of blankets over me. I pushed them off, and sat up. "Rou?" I called. Nobody was there. I stood up, and although my muscles protested waking up, I felt healthy and strong again. I took the elevator down to the cafe. Meiko was there, reading on the cafe's couch. She glanced up when she heard me.

“Did you rest well?” she asked, putting a bookmark in her book and setting it down. I recognized it as the book of poems and songs I had made for her.

“I guess. Where are the others?”

“They went out hunting. I'm on guard duty, because I'm slow,” she said.

“You're not-” I started.

“I am. And my armor is also stronger, so if Balibos shows up here to finish the job, I've got a better chance of surviving a hit,” she said, sounding practical and sensible. As usual.

“I don't want you to get hit with that,” I mumbled, looking away.

“We will be fine, Meiki. We're well rested and fed now. Rou says Balibos isn't actually that strong, aside from his sting. If we're fighting fit, we'll be fine. And you too. Or... Well, There's food if you're hungry?” She sounded hopeful, and it crushed me to shake my head.

“No, I'm fine. I'm surprised I even slept,” I said quietly.

“I see.” Her voice was even and serious. She was disappointed. She kept it out of her voice, but I knew she was.

“How long was I out this time?” I asked.

“Two days. It's the third. Just after dinner time. Rou said it was because you used Bright again.”

“I am Bright,” I said quietly, and she glanced at me as if she didn't hear me clearly. “I think it was because we got into so many fights all at once,” I said, more loudly.

“That certainly didn't help,” Meiko agreed.

“And they still haven't found Balibos?” I asked.

“No. You're welcome to go join the boys if you're feeling well enough. I'm staying here to keep an eye on Nisei,” she said, and picked up her book again.

“Don't read that,” I said, guilt and impulse boiling over.

“What? Why?” Meiko asked, frowning. I regretted saying it right away.

“I'm not...” I struggled. “It's not... You know what I am...”

She pursed her lips and stood up. “Are you saying that the sentiment behind this book is a lie?”

“No! Of course not,” I said, shaking my head. “I love you.”

“Then what does it matter, Meiki?” She demanded.

“Because I'm not Meiki! I'm a liar and a fake!” I balled my fists, willing myself not to start crying. “I don't deserve you. Any of you.”

Meiko turned away from me. “Do you really believe all of that?” Meiko asked, her voice soft.

I blinked, and took a step back. I did, didn't I? I had hid my true identity from myself for twenty long years. I wasn't human. I wasn't Meiki. I was Bright. The Bright lady, a butterfly. Right?

_Yes and no._ The thought shimmered with rainbow light. It was not mine. And it was. 

“Uh, hey,” a voice interrupted my(?) thoughts. I startled and turned to look towards the kitchen. Nisei was standing in the doorway. But his expression wasn't Nisei at all. His hair was ruffled, and he leaned against the door frame. It was like someone had taken hard wax and worked it until it was warm and soft. “I'd hate to break up a lovers spat or whatever this is but where am I?”

Meiko and I both stared at him.

“Guys?” he asked.

I hesitated. If I was wrong, he'd be angry. But this couldn't be Nisei. “Togo?” I asked, “Is that you?”

“Yeah? Who else would it be?” he asked.

I glanced over at Meiko, and she nodded slightly before pulling out her cellphone to call Akito. “Nisei?” I offered.

“Nisei?” He frowned and looked confused. “I guess it sounds familiar. Like a dream or something.”

My heart beat in my chest like a butterfly. “He... Do you remember the ReMares?”

“Yeah? Kind of. I know you were fighting them,” he said, walking towards one of the chairs and pulling it around to sit in it backwards. “I've seen a few. The last thing I remember was that terrifying deer ReMare knocking all of you out...” I could see a terrible thought dawn on his face, “We're not dead, are we? This isn't heaven?”

“I...” I wasn't sure how to answer that. Technically, both of us were dead.

“You were dead. Nisei was a ReMare who became a spirit. He was using your body,” Meiko said, putting her phone down.

“Oh,” Togo said, his eyes as wide as saucers. “So... It wasn't a dream?”

“No,” Meiko said, “But Aki Aki will be so happy you're back.”

“Aki Aki?” Togo snickered. “You haven't called him that before.”

“Mm,” Meiko smiled, and stooped to give him half a hug. “He'll be back soon.”

“Are you hungry? Meiko said there was food in the kitchen,” I offered.

“I am! And on top of giving me a ton more questions, you still haven't answered mine. Where am I?” Togo said, standing up and giving Meiko a hug back before hugging me.

I hugged him back, and smushed his face between my hands. “I haven't, have I? This is Momiji Cafe, on Kamitori Arcade. It used to be Cabbages and Condoms. It's Akito's place. Rou lives upstairs, and we all kind of use it as a base.”

“Whaaat? He's got a cafe? What happened to being a doctor?” Togo made a face and swatted my hands away.

“ReMare shenanigans, mostly,” I said lightly. “But he likes this, too.”

“Huh. So. Food?” I showed him where the snacks were, and he grabbed several curry buns, stuffing one half in his mouth as he left the kitchen. I followed him. “This is pretty good,” he mumbled through a mouthful of bread. He swallowed and said more clearly, “Akkun made-” He was interrupted by a swirling orange portal appearing in front of him, and Fall jumping through, pulling Rou along. “Damn!” Togo swore, startled.

“TOGO!” Fall shouted, grabbing Togo by the armpits and spinning him. The curry buns scattered across the dining room floor. Togo protested wordlessly. “You're here! You're alive!”

“He's still injured, idiot,” Rou said, smoothing down his own clothes and hair.

“Right. Sorry, Togo,” Fall said, and he put the very dazed boy down, and swiped clear his transformation.

“Falling down,” the belt chimed.

“Are you alright, bro?” Akito asked.

“Uh, confused, but okay, I think?” Togo said.

“Let me check your shoulder,” Akito said.

“Shoulder?” Togo shrugged experimentally. “Huh. I guess this one feels kind of stiff.” He rubbed it.

“Nisei got stabbed there by a ReMare,” Rou said, leaning against the table. “We were out looking for it.”

Akito said, sheepishly, “I should have been careful, but... It's been such a long time, thinking you wouldn't be back.”

Togo pulled off his shirt and allowed Akito to undo the bandages. “Didn't know you had armor too.”

“We've upgraded a bit,” Akito said, distracted by his work. “You do too.”

“Oh,” Togo said, blinking, “Summer, right?”

“You remember?” Akito leaned back and looked at him.

“Kind of. It's hazy,” Togo said.

Akito made a thoughtful noise, and went back to undoing the bandage.

“He's... he's not gone though? Is he?” I asked.

“Who?” Togo asked.

“Nisei,” Akito said, his voice stern. “He's my bro too, even if he is a pain in the ass.”

“Especially since he's a pain in the ass, you mean,” Meiko said, although she sounded more amused than annoyed.

“Precisely,” Akito shot her a smile. He finished unwrapping the bandage, His shoulders sank. The gray fragmentation was still there, and it had spread new fine gray cracks in Togo's fair skin. But now it was outlined in sky blue, yellow and orange light.

“That's... weird,” Togo said, awkwardly trying to get a good look at his own shoulder.

“Yeah, it is. Jiro, what do you make of it?”

Rou leaned forward to look at it. I glanced over at Meiko, who was watching the boys with a distant, serious look on her face. She had just finally allowed Nisei into her friendship group, despite how angry she had been about him before. She must be worried. Rou's words brought me back to attention. “I've never seen anything like this, but if I had to guess, I'd say Nisei is holding back the spread of those cracks. Since he's concentrating on that, nothing is stopping the body from acting with Togo's memories.”

Colors flared in my mind, and then as suddenly as they were there, they were gone, like the lights of a car racing by at night. I wasn't sure what it meant.

“Ugh, don't say 'the body' like that. It's creepy. And it makes it sound like I'm supposed to be this fake guy,” Togo complained. “I am Togo.”

“You are. But that fake guy is the only reason you're not dead, and not dead a second time,” Akito said, and motioned to start wrapping up the wound again. “And quite possibly the reason I'm not dead, several times over. We're going to find a way to save him, too.”

Togo looked away, his eyebrows furrowed.

_No._ The rainbow lights appeared again, this time with a warning. “Wait! Don't wrap it,” I said. “It might be too dark.”

Akito paused and shrugged, “If you say so. It's not bleeding or anything, so as long as it doesn't hurt much, it's fine. How does it feel, Togo?”

“It's fine.” He pulled away from Akito, and slipped his shirt back on, leaving it open.

“We should keep looking for that stupid hornet,” Rou said. “I don't know how much time either of them have left like that. Someone can stay with Togo, and the rest will go out looking.”

“Alright. Meiko, can I leave it to you? Or shall we do rock, paper, scissors for who's on guard duty?” Akito asked, making the motion with his hand.

“Doing rock, paper, scissors with four people is a pain,” Meiko sighed, and made a face.

“Meiki. I want Meiki to stay with me,” Togo said. His voice was serious, but he smiled suddenly and continued. “She's the strongest, right? She can protect me, right?”

“I..” I started to object. If I had been able to protect him, he wouldn't be in this situation at all. But before I could finish, Akito slung an arm around my shoulder and grinned.

“Sure is. She hoards all the upgrades to herself,” Akito said, grinning.

“I do not!” I finished my objection, although it was a different one from the one I originally intended.

“Come on, Meiki, I'll make something good to eat. Akkun's bread is garbage,” Togo said, taking my hand and dragging me towards the kitchen.

“Hey!” Akito objected, and started towards him.

Rou stopped him by grabbing him by the nape of the neck. “Come on, no time for that.” He dragged the shorter man flailing out of the restaurant.

“Meiki,” Meiko said softly, and I pulled out of Togo's grasp to step towards her. “Think about what I asked you.” I had nearly forgotten in the excitement, but the confusion about what I believed about myself came rushing back. “If we need your help, we'll call, okay?”

I nodded. “Stay safe.”

“You, too.” She turned and left.

I sighed and stared after them through the window. Selfish.

“Hey! You gonna help me or what?” Togo called.

“Okay!” I called back, and walked into the kitchen. Togo wasn't there. Instead, the door to Akito's living quarters was open. Togo appeared from them, wearing a light tank top that left most of his injury uncovered. He had the Summer Driver in hand. “Uh, what are you doing?”

“That Nisei guy, he's keeping me alive, right?” Togo said, running a hand through his hair. “And if I've got super powers or whatever, I should help him.”

“No, that's a terrible, stupid idea,” I said.

“That's why I asked for you, Meiki,” Togo grinned.

I raised my eyebrow, a little offended. I knew I did some dumb things sometimes but... “What's that supposed to mean?” I asked.

“That you're cool, you know? The others are too fussy, right? Meiko's not going to get into trouble, and Rou's too deep into Akkun's pocket. And Akkun's a dumb hypocrite who isn't going to let me do what I want anymore than dad would, yeah? He'd rather wrap me up in bubble wrap.”

“You're injured, it makes sense-” I started.

“And how many times has that idiot brother of mine ran out fighting monsters when he was injured?” I shut my mouth. More times than I cared for, if I was honest. Togo waved the Summer driver at me as if telling me off. “I thought so. He's always overworking himself.”

“Why are you angry at him? He loves you. He's been doing everything for your sake,” I said, shocked.

“He's an idiot, just like dad,” Togo muttered. He stared down at the ground for a long moment, and then looked up. “I'm going. If you want to come protect me or whatever, then let's go. Or you can stay. It's up to you.”

“And what if I say that we're both staying?” I asked, annoyed that this punk kid was bossing me around.

He bared his teeth at me in a wild grin, “I'll fight you.”

I stared at him for a long moment, and then shook my head, chuckling,

Togo's grin faltered, “What? What?! It's not funny!”

“You two are definitely brothers,” I said, rubbing my forehead. “I can't decide if that's horrifying or delightful.”

“I'm being serious!” He shifted his feet and raised up his arms into a fighting stance. I could have very easily knocked him over, even without transforming.

“I know,” I stretched out my muscles and he watched me warily, very likely making second thoughts on that threat. I felt good though. I didn't think I'd be limited in my transformations this time. Which meant I could be fast if I needed to be. “Let's go. But you're to listen to me, got it?”

“Okay!” he said, as if I was a parent who was giving him a triple scoop of ice cream after he had thrown a temper tantrum about not getting a double. He half raced outside, and I followed him out, locking up the shop for Akito. “Where do we go?” he demanded.

I shrugged, “I dunno. This is your mission.” I probably could have made a hornet origami and searched for him with the Pair Device on the Synchrocycle, but that would be what the others were doing too, and I'd rather not run into them on this mission.

Togo looked thoughtful for a long moment. “Well, maybe back to where you fought that thing?”

“The hornet?” I asked.

“Yeah. There was that old lady, right?” Togo paused, and looked thoughtful, “He wanted to protect her, too. That sounds like a good place to start.”

“Good enough as any,” I agreed, and started heading back to the alley where we had parked our bikes. “How do you feel about driving a motorcycle?” I asked, tossing him the helmet that was sitting on Summer's bike.

He caught it with a grunt and grinned. “I like it.”

“Follow me,” I said.

We drove up to the little fruit stand. The old woman was there, but she was packing up. She stopped when she saw us. “Oh, hello there!”

“Good evening, granny,” I said.

“Hey,” Togo said, waving to her. “Have you seen anything weird?”

“She won't remember,” I said quietly. He glanced at me, his eyebrows furrowed. It occurred to me that it felt a bit like deja vu.

The old woman stared at him for a moment, “Are my eyes playing tricks on me? You look just like that boy that was here the other day. Nisei-kun. Are you his brother?”

Togo took a step back, and shot me a look of desperation. I shrugged. Togo squared his shoulders and told the old woman, “I'm Togo. Nisei is... yeah, I guess brother is close enough?”

She clucked her tongue and shook her head. “Your brother ought to teach you manners. He's such a polite boy.”

Togo sputtered and his cheeks went red. “I'm polite!”

“Then help me load these boxes into the truck, would you?” she said, gesturing to the stack of crates.

“But...” Togo objected, and glanced back at me again.

“You did want to help her,” I said, amused. “We can't be sure a ReMare is going to show up here, so we might as well not waste our time while we wait.”

Togo frowned, but he nodded. “Alright, ma'am. I'd be happy to help.”

“Good lad,” she said approvingly, and showed him which box to pick up.

My phone pinged, and I glanced at the message. It was from Akito. “Just a second, and I'll help you, Togo.”

“Hn!” he grunted, as he shifted the box to the side that wasn't injured.

I opened the message. “Any luck?” Akito's text read.

I glanced around, worried that he had seen us out and about. “What do you mean?” I responded.

“He talked you into going out, didn't he?” Akito responded.

“Shit,” I muttered out loud, and frantically typed a response. “What makes you say that?”

“Because it's you. Because it's him,” Akito's text responded, and at the end there was an emoji that looked like it was it was throwing up it's hands in helpless dismay. “It's like the time you taught him kendo, or the time he talked you into riding the Tea Cup ride at the fair thirty-two times in a row. If he gets it into his head that I wouldn't approve, he gets you to do it with him.”

I stared at the text, realizing that he was right. He had also challenged me to eat a five pound gyoza with him too, which had been stupid. Gyoza were the size they were for a reason.

My phone pinged with another text. “Don't know where he gets off thinking I'm the responsible one of the two of us, but he does for some reason.”

I smiled, and typed, “You play protective big brother very well.”

“It's a curse,” he responded with a despondent emoji.

“Do you want me to take him back home?” I asked, glancing up to check that Togo was still doing alright.

“No. I trust you to keep him safe. And Jiro says transforming should be fine. It'll boost Nisei's strength,” Akito responded.

“Are you gonna help or not?” Togo shouted.

“Ok,” I responded to Akito's text. “See you later.” I shoved my phone back in my pocket and walked over. “Alright, Alright. I'll help,” I said, picking up the other end of the bulky box that he was struggling to pick up.

He carried it with me silently for a moment, before speaking up. “Were you tattling on me?” he asked.

“No. Akito knew already,” I said, and set the box down on the truck. “You're not the only one who thinks I'm easy to talk into doing stupid stuff.”

“Did he say to go back home?” Togo asked.

“Are we going back home?” I responded with my own question. He gave me a dirty look, and I shook my head. “No. You're a big boy.”

Togo sulked while he thought about my words, and we continued working in silence. When we finished, the old lady brought over two bottles of tea. “Thank you so much, you two,” she said.

“Thank you, ma'am,” Togo said as he took the tea bottle, remembering his manners this time. “I'm happy to help.”

“Aha! There it is. You bring that Nisei boy with you next time, Togo, do you understand? Such good boys,” she said and patted his uninjured arm. “You can help me pick pears.”

“Yes, ma'am,” Togo nodded.

“Oh, call me Granny,” she said, patting him again.

“Okay, Granny. I can come back tomorrow to help with pears, but I can't promise Nisei will be with me... I'll try though,” Togo said, sounding determined.

“Togo? It's not pear season yet,” I said quietly.

“What? No, it's September,” he said, annoyed.

“Let me look at the boxes you carried by yourself,” I said, and checked them. One of them was stained with ink on the bottom. Without touching the stained parts, I picked up the box carefully. “Granny, you might want to head on back home. I gotta take care of this.”

“But that's my-”

“Do you remember what I talked about in my radio show? About the monsters?” I knew she didn't remember us fighting the hornet monster yesterday. I hadn't defeated it.

“Oh dear, do you think one is in that box?” She asked.

“I do,” I said.

“Well, alright. I'll go. Stay safe, kids,” she said, and took off in her truck.

I glanced over at Togo and grinned. “Are you ready, Togo?”

He looked at me in alarm. “What?”

“We're gonna fight,” I said, and chucked the box up into the air. I raised up my Time Driver and brought it down to my waist. It wrapped around me, and I picked the orange Memoka and marked my driver. “Henshin!”

Orange flames appeared around me, and my belt started playing music. “Dance OBON, Go!” The Obon armor appeared on me, and the box hit the ground. It shattered, and a thousand tiny ink fruit flies exploded out of the box. They flew around angrily in a swarm for a moment, before combining to make one giant fruit fly with purple markings.

“Now would be a good time to transform,” I said, drawing my Memoka and separating it into two glowing orange fans. “Do you remember how?” I asked.

Togo hesitated, and nodded. “Y-yeah. Alright. Let's do this.” He put the Summer Driver to his waist and said, “Henshin!” He stamped the driver.

The Summer sigil appeared in front of him and passed over him, as the belt shouted “SUMMER HOWL!” The armor appeared over him.

“Ha, this is cool!” Summer said, hopping from foot to foot. It felt weird that Summer was talking and not just yelling.

It was weird that I was used to Nisei's yelling.

"Why did you have to find us? This is so annoying. Can't you just leave us alone?" the fruit fly monster complained.

"Not really, sorry," I said, feeling reluctant. I hated monsters like this. I knew I had to help them, but punching them when they weren't into fighting was hard. "That old lady shouldn't be out here in the middle of January. It's not safe for her."

"Ugh, who cares about a dumb old lady? Why didn't Balibos manage to kill you guys?" the fruit fly complained.

"I care about her!" Summer shouted, and rushed forward.

Just as Summer was about to punch the monster, it broke apart into a thousand swarming little flies. Summer stumbled through it and turned around to see the flies reform.

"You gotta get up earlier than that to hit Nergal, tanuki," the ReMare said, and reformed to look like a giant hand. Nergal made a rude gesture and reformed to look like a giant fruit fly again.

"I'm not a tanuki!" Summer objected, and rushed at the ReMare again. This time I joined him. The flies broke apart again. I gracefully hit them with my fans, taking out large swaths of the tiny ink monsters. Summer swatted at them less gracefully, but he did manage to take out some. Nergal buzzed and reformed into two identical monsters nearby.

"You've gotten real uppity since you've joined with the humans," Nergal complained. "You are what you are." This time Nergal attacked instead. One of the ReMares attacked Togo, while the other went after me. I sliced at it with my fan, but it evaded by breaking apart just where I was attacking, and then reforming. It got inside my defenses and tried to bite at my neck. I swore and ducked out of the way, smoothly evading and circling it. But it barely needed to change position. It just morphed it's features so that it turned around.

Summer was also struggling. He punched and kicked at the monster, but the ink just squelched and reformed.

"Summon your weapon! It should be nunchaku!" I called, reaching up to block a punch, although the flies broke apart and reformed on the other side of my arm, hitting me in the face anyway. I turned with the punch and allowed it to become a spin, slicing at Nergal's belly. This time I caught some of the ink and it sizzled. The flies broke apart and reformed farther away from me, slightly smaller than what it had been before.

"I have no idea how to use nunchaku!" Summer objected, but he summoned the weapon anyway. He gave it an experimental spin, and hit himself in the chest. "Damn!"

Nergal laughed exaggeratedly, leaning back with both hands on it's belly.

Summer frowned, and instead took both bars of the nunchaku in one hand and brought then down on the ReMare's head. It took a second for Nergal to realize that Summer had hit it, so several flies burned, before Nergal broke apart and reformed farther back.

"Ha!" Summer gloated, and ran at Nergal again.

The second Nergal got me with an obnoxious flick to the back of my head, having broke apart while I was distracted with helping Summer. I spun instinctively and swatted at it with my fan. It scattered, and I grumbled and rubbed the back of my helmet. That didn't even hurt, it was just annoying. It reformed into a laughing face.

I had enough. I switched my Memoka to the purple one, and changed my armor to Hime. Then, I slashed the paint brush, and created three clones. It took me a second to get steady enough to deal with the disorienting viewpoint, but then I transformed one into Obon again, another into Sakura, and the last one into 1111. With these quick forms, I put on a dizzying game of Fly Swatter, hitting as many of the little bugs as I could as fast as I could. I didn't stop until all of the flies that made up the monster that was attacking me were destroyed. And then I tottered, feeling a bit like I could throw up. Instead, I dismissed the extra copies of myself, and checked out how Summer was doing.

He was holding his own, trading blows with the bugs, although it looked like he hadn't made much headway as far as actually destroying more of the small flies.

And then Nergal broke through his guard, hitting him square on his injured shoulder. Summer fell back, and his armor glitched and crackled with light around the injury. His hand fell limp. I swore, and jumped and slid, so that I was standing between them. "I don't think so," I said, shifting to an offensive stance. Hime wasn't particularly a good fighter on her own, but I could still get in the way long enough for Summer to retreat. "Get out of here!" I shouted at him.

Instead, he roared, and the next second he was up in the air above me, his foot outstretched. His belt chimed "FUGITIVE COLOR!" as his boot crashed into the ReMare. The ink sizzled around him, and Summer landed on one knee. The remaining flies dropped to the ground, inert ink.

And a purple orb of light rose up from the mess.

Summer was breathing hard, his shoulder still crackling.

"Togo! Nisei! Hold on!" I demanded, as I ran over to them. As I tried to help him up to his feet, he shoved me aside with his good arm, and stood up slowly on his own. "Are you okay?"I asked.

"I... Am... AAAGGHGH!" he shouted, holding his head in his hands.

 

 


	41. New Friends

"AAAAGH!" Summer howled again, and reached down with jerky motions, to clear his transformation.

The belt said "Summer fades," and his armor disappeared. As soon as he could, he ripped the driver off and threw it. It clattered against the ground. His chest heaved, and I couldn't tell if he was Nisei or Togo.

"Calm down. I'm here, please..." I said, kneeling in front of him. I caught a glimpse of his injury. The cracks had spread down his arm, leaving large chunks of his skin gray and ashy. All of the blue, yellow, and orange light had retreated to blocking the cracks from spreading further to the rest of his body.

"Do. Not. Let. This. Idiot. Fight," he said, each word an intense effort. His breath hissed between clenched teeth.

"Nisei?" I asked.

He nodded, very slightly, and took a deep breath. "At first better in armor. But hit knocked him out. Can't concentrate. Don't do it," he said and made a jerky motion. "Can't. Sta y."

And then it was like a puppets strings were cut, and he swayed. I caught him, and he collapsed into a heap in my arms.

And almost as quickly, he shoved at me, pushing himself upright. "NO! This is my body!" he shouted, lashing out with his good arm.

I let him hit me a couple of times. In the armor, it was nothing. Then I grabbed his arm. "Togo. Calm down."

"I will NOT!" He struggled against me, but it might as well have been a worm trying to escape.

"He's not your enemy," I said gently. "Your shoulder got hit again, and he was trying to protect you."

Togo looked down at his arm, and frowned. "My arm? I can't move it. Meiki? I can't move it!" he said, panic rising in his voice.

"It'll be alright. It'll go back to normal when we beat Bilabos," I said. I hoped so anyway.

Togo clutched his shoulder with his good arm, staring at the faint colors that blocked off the gray skin with narrowed eyes.

"He was just trying to help both of you," I said. Togo made an annoyed noise and paced away from me. He seemed to be calming down, so I let him. "I'm sorry. I should have done better at protecting you." I cleared my transformation. "Rou thought you'd be better off transforming, because it powers up spirit stuff. I didn't think you were in danger... And Nisei said it did make him stronger, until you got hit in the shoulder, and he had to take over."

Togo was quiet for a long moment. "He was so angry. I was scared," he admitted.

"He is kind of a shouty kid, isn't he?" I said. "I think he's scared too."

"He is?" Togo asked, rubbing at his useless shoulder.

"Mm. He's been using your body for a couple of years. And when he became a spirit instead of a ReMare, he couldn't leave it. He was scared that he had become a human, and would always be you," I said. "He doesn't want to lose himself either."

He was quiet for a long moment, and then looked me in the eye, his expression stern. A shiver ran up my spine. "You are the same as him, aren't you? A spirit, I mean."

"I-" I hadn't thought about it for a little while. It seemed so easy to forget. It shouldn't be that easy to forget. "Yes. I am a spirit stuck in Meiki's body."

"Are you mad? That I'm alive? Because that means you could get kicked out?" Togo asked, suspicious.

I stared at him. "Of course not! Are you really asking me if I'm mad that one of my friends is alive? What kind of monster do you think I am?"

"The kind that uses dead bodies?" Togo asked, shrugging.

That hurt. It truly did. "I am happy you are alive. I did not ever intend to be like this, and neither did Nisei. I am... That you are both alive gives me hope, that I can undo something terrible. Don't... Don't say that." I turned away from him.

He was quiet for a long moment.

I took a deep breath. "Let's get back home. It's getting dark. I don't think they'll look much longer for the hornet ReMare tonight."

"Alright," he said quietly.

We drove back in silence, and I thought about what I had said. If he was alive, because his memories were back... I could revive Meiki, couldn't I? If I got her memories back from Benten. I tightened my grip on the Synchrocycle's handles. I had to fix things.

The arcade was lit up when we got to the cafe, and people were starting to come out to party. The New Year's holidays were mostly over now, and people wanted to get out of the house before they had to go back to work.

We parked in the alley. All of the other bikes were already there. Togo took off his helmet, and sat it on the seat of Summer's bike. "I'm sorry," he said softly.

"Huh?" I said, distracted by my own thoughts.

"I said something stupid. I'm sorry," he said.

I smiled a small, sad smile. He had found a tender spot awfully fast. But he was a good kid. "It's okay. We'll figure out how to make both of our situations right. Just, you know. Don't kill Nisei. Or get yourself killed, okay? Both of you are pretty special."

"I don't understand it, but I'll do my best," he said.

I reached over and ruffled his hair. The cafe smelled like roasting meats and curry. "Come on. I think Akito is going to feed you the entire house. You don't really think his food is garbage, do you?" It did taste like garbage to me, but that was a special case. I missed being able to enjoy his food.

"It's not garbage. It's pretty good," Togo said, and then shot me a dirty look. "Don't tell him I said that!"

"Of course not," I said, amused.

We walked into the cafe, and Akito poked his head out of the kitchen. "Oh good! You're back! We're going to eat upst- What happened to your arm?!" Akito interrupted himself, rushing over to Togo. "It's fine," Togo said, angling his body so that his arm was farther away from Akito.

"It's not fine!" Akito shot back, and looked to me.

I explained what happened and Togo gave me a dirty look.

"So I can't dodge an entire swarm of bugs! Whatever!" Togo raised up his good hand like he was demanding to know what the heck he should have done.

"Nisei said he shouldn't get into fights," I added. "If he gets hit, he can't protect the injury and fight at the same time."

Akito sighed, exasperated. "Come on. I can at least put it in a sling," Akito said.

Togo hesitated, and then nodded.

"Think you can give me a hand in the kitchen?" Akito asked as he led him in. “Since my food is garbage?” I covered a laugh with a cough, and Akito winked at me.

Togo replied seriously, "I can try. I don't know how much use I'll be."

"I'll find something," Akito said.

"I'm gonna go upstairs," I said, holding up the purple orb of light that I carried with me. "Gotta have Rou give this a home."

"Sure. We'll be up in a few," Akito said, as he got out a long cloth to use as a sling.

I pressed the button to go upstairs. "Have fun!" I said as I entered the elevator.

When I got upstairs, it was like a zoo of colored paper.

Rou was sitting there with a ton of origami paper strewn across his table. Meiko was singing softly to herself as she worked on his computer. Sen sat on her shoulder, watching her work. Even Arachne was prowling the table, knocking aside pens and loose paper, annoyed with the mess, I'm sure. I felt a surge of love for all of them. I wanted to just stand there in the doorway of the elevator, watching them.

Sharky swam up to greet me, "HI! ROU IS MAKING NEW FRIENDS!"

"Is he?" I asked, smiling at her enthusiasm.

"I've been too busy looking for Balibos that I haven't had a chance to get them into proper bodies," Rou said, as he made the finishing touches on a red lizard origami. He set it on the sigil he had drawn on red paper before, and the sigil glowed, and the origami lizard squirmed.

Sharky swam over to it. "HELLO GULA!" she shouted, and the lizard back pedaled abruptly, tripping over a pen and flailing around until Arachne put him back to rights.

"You startled him, Sharky," Meiko scolded gently. "Maybe don't yell at them in the first seconds of having a body.

"I WASN'T YELLING!" Sharky objected, but she bobbed in front of the lizard. "SORRY GULA."

Gula hesitated, and nodded slightly.

Rou picked up another piece of paper. This one was yellow. He folded it carefully. "Gula, could I have a word? All you need to do is nod, yes or no."

Gula tilted his head as he listened, and nodded.

"Balibos is one of Shika's captains, right?" The lizard nodded. "Do you know what his target is?" Rou asked.

Gula hesitated, and then nodded.

"Meiki?" he asked.

Gula hesitated and shook his head no.

"Maybe?" Rou asked, "If she's there?"

Gula nodded.

"We found her at the old woman's fruit stand. Was he after her for some reason?" I asked. The lizard gave me a look, and shook his head.

"Nisei?" Meiko asked quietly. Gula nodded.

"So we'll have to keep a close eye on him," Rou sighed, and made another fold on the yellow paper.

"I told you it was silly to go looking for him. If he's an assassin, he's going to try again," Meiko said.

"It doesn't hurt to be proactive about things," Rou said, making another crease and then unfolding it to mirror the crease on the other side.

I told Rou what Nisei had said about transforming.

"Ah... I didn't think about it being a weak point." Rou looked up alarmed. "Summer usually seems so indestructible. I'll have to tune up his driver again."

"Did you think about what I said?" Meiko asked, spinning her chair to look at me.

“What?" I asked, guiltily. She stared evenly at me. About being worth their care. Despite lying. “Yes?” I said at length.

“And?”

"I'm an idiot?" I said, a little hopeful that she'd take that as an acceptable answer.

"No," Meiko shook her head.

Thankfully at that moment, the elevator door pinged open and Akito and Togo came spilling out with a big pan of curry, a rice maker, and a tray of yakitori.

"We have dinner!" Togo announced happily, depositing his tray and the rice maker on Rou's table.

"Ah!" Rou hissed and immediately picked them back up and brought them over to the coffee table in front of the leather couch. "I'm working here! You'll mess up the paper with that junk!"

"It's not junk!" Togo objected. "That stuff is junk! It's just paper!"

"Shh, it's alright. Jiro's stuff is kinda important," Akito said, gently setting down the pot of curry down on the coffee table. "Those origami papers are used to protect the spirits that we rescue from blots."

"A table is for eating," Togo grumbled, but he dropped it.

"I WANT TO EAT A TABLE!" Sharky announced, and zoomed straight for Togo.

Togo leaned back in surprise. "You're loud," he said. After the first moment of shock, he leaned forward to inspect Sharky, who obliged by showing off. "But impressive. You're a spirit?"

"I AM SHARKY! YOU ARE NOT SO LOUD ANYMORE. WHAT HAPPENED?" Sharky demanded.

"Sharky, this is Togo, my little brother," Akito announced, throwing an arm around Togo. "Nisei is busy right now."

"OH. I LIKE THAT LOUD BOY," Sharky said, but swam in a circle. "BUT TODAY IS A GOOD DAY FOR NEW FRIENDS!"

"I'm glad you think so?" Togo said, still sounding a little overwhelmed. Akito patted his back and disappeared over to Rou's small kitchen, and brought back some bottles of soda.

"Can you take a break to eat, guys? We're celebrating!" Akito said, passing out the soda to each of us.

"Of course," Meiko said, and came over to the couch. She took my hand and squeezed it, and I didn't let go. I let her lead me over to the couch.

"Just a second," Rou muttered, finishing another origami. This one looked like a crayfish. He activated it with the yellow paper sigil and the crayfish came to life.

"MAJAKKI!" Sharky shouted, and rushed over to greet her.

Rou got up to join us at the couch.

"Alright, I want to propose," Akito started.

"Didn't Meiki already do that?" Meiko asked innocently, and Akito made a face at her.

"I want to propose a toast. Lots of them! To the Mei Brigade! For finally beating Shika!" We cheered and clapped, and he continued. "To Rou, for finally getting Ki back with us!" Rou grinned and his eyes flashed pink. "To Meiko, for officially dragging Nisei into the Mei Brigade!" She waved a hand at him as if dismissing his words. "To Meiki, for saving the town, again and again." I blushed at his words. What I was doing... it was the least I could do. "To Nisei, for staying strong even when conflicted. And to Togo! Despite all odds, you're back! I am so happy you are alive and well. I've missed you so much in the past couple of years." Akito raised up his soda. "Cheers!"

"Cheers!" we echoed, and clinked glass bottles with him.

The others ate and we chatted, laughing and filling Togo in on everything that had happened while he was dead.

"I don't get it. Why do you like that Nisei guy so much? It sounds like you just bullied him into hanging out with you because he was using my body," Togo asked, as he stripped grilled chicken off a skewer with his teeth.

"Maybe at the beginning," Akito admitted, "but he's a good kid."

"He put up with a lot of nonsense from Ki, and from us, even when he didn't really have a good reason to. It's because of that we're alive, I think," Rou said softly.

"He was a thief. And he's loud. But he got thrown in with us, whether any of us liked it or not, and despite all of that, he did his best to help us, without really having a reason, " Meiko said, shrugging.

I nodded. “Even if it causes himself more problems. He was really scared when he started to get your memories back."

"But he still went to Mom, when she remembered you. He doesn't want to be you, but he didn't want her to be sad and think you were dead," Akito said.

"Although he did end up running off like a weirdo," Rou admitted. He had finished eating and was making a brown origami body for Pom.

"She's more used to that than you'd think," Akito said cheerfully. "She has some weird sons."

Togo frowned, "Mom... How has she been holding up?"

"Ah, well. She'd be happy to see you, you know," Akito said. "The real Togo, anyway."

"Can we visit her tomorrow?" Togo asked, his voice soft.

"Of course, bro. If you hadn't suggested it, I would have insisted on it," Akito said.

"And what about dad?" Togo asked.

Akito frowned. "Hopefully he won't be there."

Togo glanced at him, and then at me. "Your dad was working with one of the ReMares," I said.

"With Shika, of all things," Akito grumbled.

"To be fair," Meiko said, "We do not know if he was working with her out of his own ambition, or if she made him forget his morals."

"I guess," Akito said reluctantly. "He's always been a jerk though."

"Togo said you were just like him," I tattled.

"Shhhhh!" Togo said, waving his hands to try and get me to stop.

"He what?" Akito raised his eyebrows. "Togo! That is the worst thing you've ever said to me! And you used to call me Brother Poop!"

"I don't need to be protected like a baby!" Togo said, trying to defend himself.

"I don't think you're a baby. If I can protect the people I care about, I'll do it. I don't want to lose you again," Akito said, his tone no longer jokingly scandalized. He glanced at us and then back at Togo. "I don't want to lose any of you, do you understand?"

"I-I know! I get it. That was before I knew that you knew I would try to fight anyway and were fine with it," Togo said. "And before I knew that it was a bad idea, I guess." He rubbed at his useless arm. "I'm sorry."

Akito ruffled his hair. "It's fine. Bad ideas are fine...Just don't die. And don't compare me to him again. Ugh." Akito shuddered, shaking off the words.

"I'll try," Togo said, giving him a wry grin.

Rou finished Pom and released her onto the table. She looked at Togo inquisitively, before scampering over to join the other spirits. Rou hesitated when grabbing another piece of paper. He took the purple paper, but didn't seem sure about how to fold it.

“What's up?” I asked.

“I was going to do Shika next but...” Rou frowned.

“Do we gotta?” Akito complained.

“It would be worth it to find out what her deal was with your father,” Meiko said softly.

“I guess, but there's gotta be someone else who knows-” Akito said, clearly not into it. “And it's not like she'll talk for a while. We could just wait?”

“We have to,” I said, firmly. “The blots are the problem, not the spirits. The only reason they became ReMares was because of the very real fear that the blots would destroy them. Shika thought that by protecting Meiki... I was trying to kill her. But, if she sees we were willing to put her in another body, so that she could be safe...”

“She's not going to like you just because of that,” Arachne said, and I nearly jumped to hear her voice again. “I certainly don't like you.”

“I'm sorry,” I said, still shocked.

“You've been helping us,” Akito said.

“I have. I'm not stupid. Doesn't mean I like you guys.” Arachne arranged her feet neatly, looking prim and annoyed.

“Why wait until now to say something?” I asked.

“Because it wouldn't surprise me if Shika did not help you,” Arachne said. “It would not surprise me if she did the opposite of that. And unfortunately, I'm a bit invested in you morons now, so I'd rather not deal with all that.”

“I COULD WATCH HER!” Sharky shouted, butting into the conversation. “SHARKY IS PRETTY STRONG! ARACHNE! YOU COULD HELP TOO! MAKE HER STOP IF SHE TRIES TO RUN AWAY!”

“We're not imprisoning her,” I said, exasperated. I didn't want to give her more reason to hate me.

“We're not?” Akito asked, his playful tone starting to show it's hard edges.

“No, of course not,” I said.

“That you think I could, even when she's at her weakest, is silly,” Arachne said, shoving Sharky away from her. Sharky was almost immediately back in her face.

“BUT ARACHNE IS STRONG!”

“I didn't think you'd be so quick to forgive her,” Akito said quietly. Togo watched us both with curious intensity, as if we were the last episode of his favorite show.

All of the things she had done to me piled up. She had hunted me, young and helpless, running me straight into Benten's deadly clutches. Me? Not me? I pushed that thought aside. She had ripped apart Year, and then my friends. And Togo. She had used Akito's father. She had plunged the town into darkness, and nearly destroyed us all. Again. And then... she had made me remember. I stared at Akito evenly. “I do not. But I understand her.”

“Meiki-” Meiko started, and I held a hand up to ask her to wait.

“She was doing whatever she could to survive, and I couldn't save her before that became dangerous to others,” I said.

In my head, the rainbow voice said, “Child.”

“If this is about that whole not really being Meiki thing then-” Akito started, his voice rising.

“Shut up,” Rou said, and to my surprise, Akito listened to him. He glared, but he listened. Rou made a determined noise and started folding paper. “I will make a body for this fly thing first. Tomorrow, before we go visit your mom, I'll make Shika. Just in case she can tell us about your dad. Unless you can, Gula?”

Gula shook his head no.

“Alright then. Go to bed, idiots. Save the fighting for the ReMares,” Rou said, kicking us out of the lab. Nobody was particularly happy about the situation, but I guess she had waited this long, one more day wouldn't hurt.

The next day, we met up at the cafe. Akito was looking sullen and nervous. He kept trying to fix Togo's hair, but Togo swatted him away and put on a baseball cap. Backwards. It certainly was a look, with his white tank top and weird injury.

Rou came downstairs, looking tired. “Are you alright?” Meiko asked.

He nodded. “Spent some time arguing with Ki. It's fine, though.”

“Did he tell you not to do it?” Akito asked, clinging to his arm.

“No,” Rou said, with dry amusement, and gently pulled away. “We were having a philosophical discussion about spirits and humans coexisting.”

“Ugh, sounds boring,” Akito said, pulling a sour face.

“Come to any conclusions?” I asked, also trying to sound bored and joking, but my voice caught in my throat. Rou looked at me, his eyes soft.

“Not yet, Meiki,” he said, and the rainbow light inside me fluttered wildly. “Are we ready?” he asked, pulling out a purple deer origami and another piece of purple paper with a sigil on it. Akito grumbled, but Meiko nodded. He transferred the spirit over to the origami. She twitched to life, and stood on the table.

She fixed me with a disdainful look. “I'm sorry, Shika,” I said softly.

“What did you do to my dad?” Togo blurted out.

She glanced at him, tilted her head, and bounded out of the room.

Akito tried to dive after her, but she was quick, and she jumped right out of his reach. Akito hit the floor. “Ugh,” he grunted, and pushed himself back up. “I knew this was a bad idea,” he muttered.

“I know,” I said, “I'm full of them.” And got punched in the arm. “Ow!” I shot Meiko a glare, “That actually hurt!”

“Did it?” she asked, eyebrows raised.

“Yes!”

“Oh. I am sorry,” she said, although she did not sound remotely sorry.

“What was that for?”

“I wonder,” Meiko said. “Maybe I thought you were sleeping and needed waking up, since the nonsense you're spouting sounds like a bad dream?”

“I dunno, she has some pretty-” Akito started, and was silenced by Meiko's glare.

“Ever since you fought Shika and decided that you are the Bright Lady, all you've done is mope!” Meiko rounded on me again, hands on her hips.

“But-” I started.

“No buts! I don't want to hear about how you're lying or whatever! I know you. I know you better than anyone, and I don't care! You're laying this big dumb guilt trip on yourself, but look,” she gestured wildly at Togo, who took a step back and looked like a deer in headlights. “He's alive! Rou is alive! You are alive! Maybe your memories are all mixed up with the Bright Lady's, but Meiki is still Meiki.” She took a step up to me and poked me hard between the collar bones. “You are alive. Do you understand me?” She punctuated each word with another poke, glaring up at me with her righteous fury.

I stared down at her. Whatever I was feeling at that moment, it was too much to put into words.

And then there was a soft clapping noise from the corner of the cafe. Balibos leaned against the wall. “Very touching. But you are taking to long to succumb to Balibos's poison and Balibos is tired of waiting.”

Akito pulled Togo behind him and got out his own driver in one fluid motion.

Meiko rounded on him. “Don't interrupt!” she commanded, and slammed her driver against her waist and said, “Henshin!” She stamped the driver twice, and two sigils passed over her, and her Long Night armor appeared.

I was seconds behind, swiping my driver with the indigo marker, and shouting "Henshin!" The driver chimed and announced my new form, and my Witch armor appeared.

Long Night launched herself at Balibos, knocking him through the window and onto the street.

"Aw, come on!" Akito complained.

"I'm going ahead," I said, saluting Akito and Rou, leaving them for guard duty.

"I want to-" Togo said, pulling out his driver. His other hand still hung uselessly at his side.

Rou plucked it out of his hand. "Not yet."

"But-"

"Henshin!" Akito said, and also transformed into his second form, standing there as Deep Fall. "Listen this time, bro." He nodded at me, and I hopped out of the window after Long Night.

The hornet had managed to squirm free of her grip, and had retreated a healthy distance away from her. The people around the arcade had already started scattering, yelling about monsters as they got away.

Long Night was crouched low, watching him, ready to strike. "Don't let him get away," she said quietly, without looking at me.

I nodded, and drew the Prism Wand.

"Balibos does not see why you are bothering with that creature," the hornet said, slowly circling us. I shifted my stance so that he couldn't get behind me.

"He is ours," Long Night said, and threw herself at him. Balibos darted out of the way.

"Abracadabra!" I said, and stepped through a portal to intercept him. I punched his head, and it squelched. He stumbled back a few steps and grinned.

"You're going to need to do more than that to defeat the legendary Balibos!" he bragged, and bared his needle sharp claws. He ran at me, but Long Night crashed into him. They both went sprawling, and Long Night rolled a little before popping back up on one knee. Balibos buzzed angrily, and righted himself.

There was a crashing noise from the shop, and then I heard both Spring and Summer's transformation chimes. At the same time, a wash of uneasy dread washed over me. Something was not right.

Balibos laughed. "It's too late! It's too late for you! He's here! Goodbye, butterfly! Goodbye, stupid tanuki! Goodbye, human! Goodbye!"

"We're not going anywhere!" Long Night snarled, and stood up, drawing her sword, and leveling the glowing green blade at the hornet's head.

"You're wasting your time," Balibos said with a sing song buzz. "Benten has your friends, and they're going to die!"

Without thinking, I used my magic to teleport to Long Night. I grabbed her, and teleported back into the shop.

And he was there.

 


	42. Family

The entire cafe was dripping with ink. Summer was on his knees, clutching his arm, which crackled with faint light. Spring Fever and Deep Fall were both standing in front of him, weapons drawn but tendrils of ink clung to their limbs.

And he was standing in front of them, one finger to his chin, as if thinking.

He did not seem very different. His button down shirt was black now, and his hands dripped with ink. His eyes were solid black. The rest was shimmering white light. He glanced at me, eyebrow raised. He smiled.

And I froze.

Long Night did not. Like she was dancing snow in a blizzard, she spun and sliced at the ink holding Spring Fever and Deep Fall. The ink fell, and Deep Fall did not hesitate. He grabbed his brother and disappeared through a portal.

"Ah, no," Benten said, softly, and I saw that Spring Fever had started running at him to attack, only because Spring Fever was suddenly caught by the ink again, arm raised to punch the ReMare with his wrist mounted blade. "I think this one too," he said, and casually flicked his hand at Long Night too, trapping her with ink.

"No!" I said, finally moving, swiping my belt with the Bright Memoka, light bursting from me. A small hole in the ink burned away around me. I grabbed Long Night's arm, and the ink holding her fell away. Without stopping, I rushed forward for Spring Fever too, freeing him. He stumbled, no longer held in an awkward pose by the ink. "Both of you, get out of here!" I shouted. It had been a bad idea to bring Long Night with me in the first place. I shouldn't have. It was selfish. I knew it was.

"We're not leaving you, idiot!" Spring Fever said, standing up straight and lifting a threatening fist.

Long Night stepped up next to me. She nodded, and gripped the hilt of her sword tighter.

"Please!" I was terrified. I didn't think I could beat him. His presence was so overwhelming. I had to concentrate to keep my light from flickering out.

"Oh no, do stay," Benten said, shrugging. "She like to think she can boss people around when lives are on the line."

There was a sizzle of a portal and Deep Fall appeared above him, foot extended for a kick.

Without looking, Benten gestured lazily, and a huge column of ink sank down from the ceiling, blocking his kick. Deep Fall's foot got stuck in the mire and he fell, hanging from one leg, his shoulder cape blocking half of his helmet.

"No! Why did you come back!?" I demanded, and launched myself at Benten, my Prism sword drawn and raised.

I slashed at him, but he just... wasn't there. I heard him laughing, and spun around. He had put an arm around Spring Fever and Long Night's shoulders, leaning his head against Spring Fever. His armor flickered like static and downgraded to Spring. Both of them stood frozen, in shock. "Now, I'm afraid you have something that belongs to me. Let me see..." he patted Long Night's helmet, and her armor jittered and became Winter again.

I roared and ran at him again. I couldn't let him take them. They were my friends. My family. I loved them.

He raised his hands as if dropping something hot, and both of them fell to the ground. He disappeared again. I skidded to a stop, and spun to protect them. I wanted to stop and make sure they were okay, but if I did, he might find an opening and attack them again. I had to believe that they were alright. They weren't totally untransformed. I couldn't let down my guard. He appeared on a raised bar of ink, and paced it, still looking thoughtful. "Aha. Here they are." he snapped a finger, and several pillars of ink rose up. Each one held an origami bot. Sen struggled against the ink, beating her wings uselessly. Majakki tried to claw at it, but the ink only smoothed over her claws, trapping them. Pon bit at it, but had no better luck. Kurage's tendrils were all trapped, and she couldn't move at all. Nergal's wings were stuck and his legs waved in the air weakly. Gula was squirming too, trying to get away. Shika stood on the pillar, unaffected and smug.

"Let them go!" I demanded.

"That's my line, isn't it?" he said, and twisted his hand into a fist. The ink tightened around them, and the paper crinkled. Seven globes of light rose up out of them. I gritted my teeth. I had promised Sen I would protect her. I ran.

He made another lazy gesture, and the orbs were sucked into him. He grinned, and for a second, had way too many teeth and even more eyes. I froze again. I couldn't run. I struggled, but I couldn't.

And then his face was back to normal, although somehow not any less unsettling.

"Scared?" he asked, tilting his head slightly.

"No," I lied, giving up on moving, instead raising my sword. Come to me, come to me, my thoughts echoed.

A portal opened up under Spring and Winter, and they both fell through it. Another portal appeared behind me, and Deep Fall stepped through. On his shoulder was Arachne, and Sharky swam near his head.

"MEANIE HEAD!" Sharky shot at Benten.

Deep Fall grabbed my arm and pulled me through.

We reappeared in a park. Spring and Winter were both on the ground, and Summer was watching over them nervously.

Deep Fall staggered, and released his transformation. "Oh man, that was bad." Summer copied him, also dropping his armor.

I followed suit. I couldn't stay Bright for long. "What... What happened? How did you get free?"

"I HELPED!" Sharky said happily, swimming in my face. "AND ARACHNE!"

"When she saw the others get grabbed by the ink, she picked me up by a leg. It was very undignified," Arachne was still on Akito's shoulder.

"WHATEVER! I DID NOT HAVE A BIG ENOUGH MOUTH FOR MORE. I AM SORRY." Sharky dipped her head in apology.

"She had me stop you from getting to close to that... That." Arachne said in distaste.

"Sharky came and got me free," Akito said, fondly. "And was pretty sneaky about it too."

"I WAS!!!" Sharky bobbed excitedly.

"I don't get it, why did we run?" Togo asked.

I glanced over at him, and noticed that the others were starting to stir. I breathed a sigh of relief.

Akito stared at him like he was crazy. “Are you kidding? Look at your arm!” Togo's arm did look worse. The lights blocking off the gray area were weak and flickering. Togo made a face. “Look at them!” Akito gestured at Spring and Winter.

“I'm fine,” Spring snapped as he sat back up, but he quickly powered down. Rou ran a hand through his hair. “So. That's him.”

“You all should have gotten out when I-” I started.

“So you'd be stuck in there with him alone?” Winter demanded. She stood up, using Rou's shoulder to push herself. He scowled up at her, but didn't object. She put her hands on her hips and continued her previous lecture like we hadn't just barely escaped death in the middle of it.“You weren't doing any better against him, and that's with your fancy powered up form. Don't lump this all on your own stupid head! We are a team!” She swiped her driver clear, and Meiko continued towards me. She grabbed me by the front of my vest. I stared down at her. I felt like an idiot. I had made her angry.

“We're more than that,” Rou said softly.

“You asked why I came back, yeah?” Akito said, putting a hand on my shoulder. “Cause I love you. All of you, yeah? I know I've done stupid shit in the past, but I'm not about to make Meiko mad at me again.” He flashed me a cheeky grin. “Good luck with that.” He patted my shoulder and walked away to help Rou and Togo stand back up.

I rubbed tears from my eyes. “I'm sorry. I don't... I don't know what I am anymore. I... A lot of things are confusing and I am so afraid of losing you guys... He... He was my friend once, and I couldn't find a way to save him before he became that.”

Meiko let go of my vest and pet the side of my face. “I know. But pushing us away isn't going to fix it. I want to protect you too, you know?” She said, her voice soft again. “We'll do it together, okay? You know you can lean on us, right? We promised.”

“Ugh, you guys are being all mushy and gross,” Togo complained.

I nodded, and laughed weakly, “I guess. Sorry. I'll try to do better.”

“Thank you,” Meiko said.

“In any case, we need to figure out what to do now. I don't think we can go back to the lab. Where should we go? Do you know anything more about him, Meiki? What he wants? Any weaknesses?” Rou asked.

“No... Not the way he is now. He wanted to save the spirits, but... He ate the ones that were in the origami bots that he caught...” I hadn't been able to save them either. Meiko took my hand and squeezed hard. Right. Beating myself up over that wouldn't help them any. If I could beat him, I could save them.“I don't know. He's different now.”

“He maintains the Under, and the Under maintains him,” Arachne said. “If he is here, the Under is... not.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Akito asked.

Arachne shrugged her front legs. “He is more blot than any of us ever were. He needs the Under. He'll go back.”

“So we can go back to the cafe?” Rou asked. She shrugged again.

“I still want to see mom,” Togo said in a small voice.

“Then let's do it,” I said, taking a deep breath. “We don't know how long he'll stick around, but it might not be a good idea to go right back, right? He might expect that. So, we go visit your mom, and we stay at my place tonight. We'll figure out how to fight him later.”

“It sounds like a plan. Let's go,” Meiko said.

It took some doing, getting all of us there, considering our bikes were all back at the cafe. We walked for part of the way, and then caught a bus. Even that only took us to the beginning of the neighborhood.

“I have been thinking,” Rou started, as we walked through the neighborhood, which was a lot more familiar this time than the last time I was here. I remembered playing on these streets with Akito and the others when we were little. I remembered scuffing my knee on the side of the road when diving for a soccer ball, and Akito had done some excellent first aid, for a fourth grader.

“Sounds dangerous,” Akito said cheerfully. His eyes looked wary though, and I could tell that he was trying to keep a sharp eye out for more trouble in his neighborhood.

“Shush you. I was wondering why that's the first time ReMares have shown up there,” Rou said.

“Not true. Nisei went there a couple of times before he was cured,” Akito said.

“That's different, he was human too,” Meiko said.

“Are you idiots?” Arachne asked incredulously.

“Enlighten us, oh mighty Arachne,” Akito said, flourishing a hand, like he was going to bow.

“IT IS A BRIGHT PLACE! BECAUSE OF ALL OF YOU AND US!” Sharky interrupted. “IT'S HARD TO GO IN RIGHT FROM THE UNDER.”

“Considering the way Shika acted right up until he crushed her, I'm guessing she called for Bilabos, and he broke through for worse things,” Arachne said, leaning away from Sharky's shouting.

“I knew it was a bad idea,” Akito said in a sing song voice.

“I'm sorry, Aki. I didn't expect her to act that way,” I said, giving up the apology honestly and freely. “I can't say that I wouldn't do the same thing again, despite knowing that she'd betray us, though.”

He bumped into me as way of accepting the apology. “I know. That's why I'm around. You're too forgiving. Someone's gotta look out for you.”

“You also betrayed us, and she let you back despite that too, Aki Aki,” Meiko said.

“Why do you gotta bring that up now?” Akito asked, sounding more offended then what he probably was.

“He had a reason. And so does she, probably,” I said. I was feeling oddly at ease for once in a very long time. Maybe because I had been chewed out so thoroughly. Maybe because I was just happy that they were all alive after that encounter.

We made our way to the Meiaki residence. Akito bowed deeply and gestured towards the gate bell, inviting Togo to press it. “Master Togo, if you please,” he said, before straightening up with a grin.

“Shut up,” Togo said, but he pressed it anyway.

Their mom's voice crackled to life over the intercom. “Hello? Who is it?”

“Mama, it's me. Akito and his friends, too,” Togo said, his voice softening. It sounded a bit like he might cry, but we politely ignored that.

“Togo? Baby!” The gate buzzed unlocked, and the front door slammed open. Their mom ran out. Togo ran towards her and they collided in a hug. “Togo, I was so worried about you when you ran off like that! What happened to you?” she asked, pulling away to hold him from arm's length to get a good look at him, “Is that a tattoo? Are you in a gang?” Honatsu demanded. “Where is your shirt?”

“Moooom,” he whined. “It's not a tattoo. I'm not in a gang. Jeeze.”

“Let's go inside and talk about it, Mom. We've kinda had a long day already, and it's not even noon,” Akito said, walking up to give her a quick hug and guide her back inside. He looked back over his shoulder and waved for us to follow him.

“Excuse our intrusion,” Meiko said softly as she entered the house.

“Oh, you're welcome!” Honatsu said happily, and then glared at Akito, “You haven't gotten him into a gang, have you Akkun? I know you do some weird things sometimes, and I allow it, but I can't have you being in a gang.”

“No, mom,” Akito said. “I'm too pretty to be in a gang.”

“You know we wouldn't do stuff like that, right Meiaki-san? We're heroes,” I said.

“He's a nerd,” Rou said, helpfully.

“If you say so. You just missed your father, you know. He's got a very important meeting today. Some science corporation from America wants to open up a branch here, and they went his support. It's very interesting,” Honatsu said, as she broke away from us to rattle around the kitchen. “Akkun, Togo-kun, take them to the sitting room, please.”

“Yes, Mom,” they said in unison, and chuckled at each other.

The brothers led us to the little tatami room. “I'm going to go help mom,” Togo said, before disappearing off to the kitchen.

“Do we tell her it's an injury?” Rou asked Akito in hushed tones.

“We... probably should,” Akito said, sounding like he'd rather not. He sighed. “Honestly, we should tell her all of it. This whole thing is kind of confusing otherwise.”

“Why wouldn't you tell her? You've told her just about everything else,” Meiko asked, leaning against my shoulder.

“If I wanted to avoid feeling responsible for it, I guess?” Akito shrugged.

Togo came in, carefully carrying a tray of rice crackers and other snacks with one hand, and put it on the table. His mom was close behind with a tray of cups of hot tea. She passed them out to all of us, and they both sat down.

And we explained.

When we finished, she sat there, staring at Togo. “So... You really did die?”

“I guess. I don't understand it much more than you. All I know is it's like, three years later than it should be?” Togo shrugged lopsidedly.

“And this Nisei boy?” She glanced at us.

“You met him at the temple. He was nervous, and ran,” I explained.

She was quiet for a few moments. “I do not like how dangerous this has been for you.”

“I know, mom,” Akito said. “We're... I think we're getting close to the end of it.”

“Mm. It has been a while since my house was full of my babies and their friends,” she said, “So I suppose you've made that much progress.”

“Right! Nobody is even here because their memories are gone this time!” Akito said cheerfully.

“I do want to thank you again for taking care of us back then,” Meiko said.

“Oh goodness, that was almost a whole year ago, wasn't it? I'm glad I could help,” Honatsu said, and patted her hand. “You and Rou have been very kind to my sons, so I appreciate it, too.”

“We're happy to keep him out of trouble,” Rou said blandly, and Akito rolled his eyes at him.

“You said that our... father.... was up to something?” Akito said, dodging the topic, although he didn't sound any more pleased by his his own choice of an escape topic.

“You make it sound so devious!” she scolded, and shook her head. “Honestly, I would have thought you'd be happy. I don't remember what company it was, but they were interested in purchasing the Meiaki Togo Memorial Hospital and putting it to work.”

“Ugh, it's so weird you guys named that after me,” Togo complained.

“Maybe it's a different Meiaki Togo,” I said, glancing at Akito, to see if he was catching the teasing. “I was told there were a lot.”

Akito did, and he made a face at me for it. His mother on the other hand, did not. “Oh no, it's definitely named after him. We donated a lot of money when he first was admitted. And even more when he...” Honatsu faltered.

“It was a...” I had intended to tell her it was just an inside joke of Akito's but he shook his head vigorously and made an ex shape with his arms. “Of course, I'm sorry,” I said, changing tactics.

“We should go and see what is going on,” Meiko said. “Akito's been doing so much work on it, I really think he should be consulted.”

“I guess,” Akito was still reluctant to go see his dad. “But what about Togo?”

“I'm staying here,” Togo said, sounding sulky.

“That's fine. But one of us should stick around in case that stupid bee shows up again,” Akito said.

“BILABOS IS NOT A STUPID BEE! Bilabos is a hornet!” came a roar from outside, and surprise, surprise, Bilabos was banging on a window.

“Oh my!” Honatsu exclaimed.

“Speak of the devil,” Rou muttered, standing up.

“He's not really a good assassin is he?” Meiko asked.

“Doesn't make him any less dangerous,” I said, following Rou's lead. I felt reluctant to leave the others. If Benten showed up, I was not entirely confident that we would escape again.

“I'll stand guard here. If I need to I can poof us out of here,” Akito offered, standing up and putting his driver to his waist. He didn't transform yet.

I nodded, and the three of us left him and his family behind to run out into the garden.

“Henshin!” The three of us said together, going through each of our transformation poses. I swiped my driver with the Red Memoka, and transformed into New.

“Can you grab him from behind, Winter?” I asked.

“If he comes close enough. I'm not fast,” she complained.

“I am though. Let's do this.” Spring said, clenching his fists so that his pink wrist blades appeared.

Balibos looked bored. “Balibos is not here for you,” he grumbled, and tried to ooze his way through the bottom of the window. Spring was suddenly behind him, slashing him with his wrist blade.

“And that's why we're here to stop you,” Spring said.

Balibos buzzed angrily and spun around. His eyes flashed when he saw Spring. “You are also an abomination, aren't you? Not as bad as those two, but you aaaare. You are also on Balibos's list.”

“Which is it? Are you here to fight me or not?” Spring taunted, and jabbed at Balibos again. This time Balibos struck back, his sharp fingers thrusting out at Spring. But Spring was too fast.

“I want to know how sharing a body with a human is somehow worse than sharing a body with a memory stealing goo?” Spring taunted again, and Balibos lunged after him,

“Balibos does not have to tell you anything!” Balibos buzzed. Spring dropped low, his leg still out, and Balibos stumbled over his leg. His wings fluttered and he righted himself, dropping down slowly to stand on the ground again.

“Prism Charge Complete!” my belt chimed, and I drew the Memoka. “Prism Gun! Go, Go, Go!” It announced as it became a red gun in my hands.

I raised the gun slowly and shot at him. One hit him in the wing, and he yelled wordlessly, the buzzing intensifying. I shot again, and this time he evaded, dodging back. I kept shooting. Balibos tried to go to escape to the side instead of backwards, so Spring darted in and jabbed at him. Balibos dodged and stumbled back. Right into Winter's arms.

She grabbed under his arms and held them tight.

“Let Bilabos go! This is an indignity!” He struggled against her, but she was a lot stronger.

I spun my gun, and aimed carefully. “Vanishing Point!” My belt announced, and I shot him. The reddish gold coins of light struck him in the chest, and the black ink melted away. He became an orb of brown light, floating in front of Winter.

“Ugh, that packs a punch,” Winter complained, rubbing her chest.

“Sorry,” I said, and cleared my transformation.

“It's fine. I knew my armor could handle it,” she said, and followed suit.

Spring did a flurry of punches to the air, dancing around. “That was great!” he cheered. “Did you see that? I was running circles around him! Ha!”

“Yes, yes, you were very fast,” Meiko said, like she was a distracted mom with an enthusiastic six year old.

“We should go check on Togo,” I said, glancing back to the window that Bilabos had been banging on. Akito was waving from the other room. I waved back, and headed inside. Rou cleared his transformation, and then he and Meiko followed me in.

“Nice work, guys!” Akito said, having went back to his brother and mom in the sitting room. He was inspecting Togo's arm. It was it's normal color again.

“You've gotten rather pale, haven't you, Togo?” Honatsu asked, petting his hand.

“Are you complaining?” Togo asked, “you used to demand that I should wear long sleeves and sunscreen all the time.”

“And did you ever listen?” she asked.

“No?” Togo shrugged.

“So it's so strange that you are now. Although running around in your undershirt... Heavens knows what I taught you,” she said, dismayed but fond. “Are you kids hungry after that fight? I could make you some real food.”

“I think we're alright,” Meiko said, glancing at Rou, who shrugged.

“Nonsense, I'll make something,” she said, and stood up and walked into the kitchen again.

“Too bad, she's going to feed you,” Akito said with a grin, “Can you make a fist?” Akito asked Togo, and Togo complied by making a fist, and then rotating his shoulder.

“I'm fine! See?” he said, and wiggled all of his fingers.

“How about Nisei?” Akito asked. The light had disappeared from his shoulder.

“How should I know?” Togo grumbled.

“Can you sense him there?” Rou asked. Togo gave him an annoyed look, Rou had just asked him if he could sense if there were aliens on Mars. “Just close your eyes and kind of reach inward and see if there's light?”

Togo made a face, but did shut his eyes. He took a deep breath and let it go.

And suddenly there were two of him. One was a pale blue, orange, and yellow echo of him, with a thick fluffy tail.

Nisei immediately started yelling, “He said check if I was there, not kick me out!”

Togo crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows. “I'll do what I want, it's my body.”

“Glad you're alright,” Akito said.

“Me too,” I added.

“Welcome back,” Meiko said.

“I'm back,” Nisei agreed, and then scowled. “But he's going to get me killed. I can't run around like this!” He gestured at his spirit body.

“I can give you an origami body,” Rou offered, getting out a box of paper that he kept with him.

Nisei shook his head. “I want to fight. And what about school? And I have a job! I can't work at the radio station as a piece of paper!”

“Well, we could probably arrange that,” Meiko said, shrugging.

“No!” Nisei objected.

“Yeah, and what about me? This is my body. I had things to do too, before you stole it!” Togo said, standing up and pointing his thumb at his chest.

“I didn't steal it, you weren't using it!” Nisei said. “Dead people don't need a body!”

Togo couldn't argue with that, so instead he said, “It's mine! It's been mine since I was born!”

“Yeah? Well, me too!” Nisei threw back. I didn't think it was entirely true, but he had been very young when he had been put there.

Togo looked puzzled as he tried to figure out how old Nisei was. “Are you some kind of baby?”

Rou's eyes turned pink and bright, and Ki spoke, “You could share. I do not think Summer will be as strong without Nisei. It would be worth it to work together, at least until we are finished fighting.”

Togo wrinkled his nose. “Absolutely not.” He stood up and stormed out of the room.

Nisei clenched his fists on his knees and sat up straighter. “I am sorry, Rou. If it is possible to use one of your origami things for the time being. I do not wish to be a ReMare again.”

“Yeah, no problem,” Rou said, his eyes dark brown again. “Let me see... You're not just one color, are you?” He sorted through his papers. “Which one should I use?”

“I started off as yellow,” he said miserably. “But I have been Summer for a long time.”

“Didn't you use dual colored paper that one time?” Akito asked, “And Memoka for the third?”

“Right, when you made the ninja star trackers,” I said, remembering.

Rou nodded, “That might work.” He fished out one of those and started folding. Nisei watched him warily.

“I'm gonna go run after Togo now. I'll be back,” Akito stood up and stretched.

“Tell him I understand his distaste, and that I am sorry for yelling at him,” Nisei said reluctantly.

“Will do,” Akito gave him a lazy salute before heading off.

“Are you?” I asked, glancing at him.

“Yes. No. I don't know. I am mad that I don't have a body anymore. Which is stupid. I was mad last month that I had one,” Nisei rubbed his forehead. “I was starting to like my life.”

“If it makes you feel any better, Meiko and I will do anything we need to in order to make sure you can stay involved in the radio station, if that's what you want,” I said.

“Thank you,” he said stiffly.

“It's a pretty good territory,” Ki said through Rou.

Nisei nodded. “I know. That is not why I like it.”

“I know,” Meiko said softly.

Rou passed me the tanuki that he had folded. It was yellow, although places where he had folded it had little peeks of sky blue. “Can you add some orange?” I did, carefully writing Nisei's name. I handed it back to him, and he held it out to Nisei. “Are you ready?” he asked.

“No. But I do not like risking this form,” he said, and reached out to touch the origami. He disappeared, and the paper tanuki twitched to life. “This is odd,” he said, as he tested out his limbs.

“You might still be able to fight,” Meiko said suddenly. “Arachne and Sharky have helped us.”

Nisei tilted his little paper head. “I have seen Sharky get crushed a number of times, and my magic is not the same as Ara... Oh.” he said, and did a flip.

There was a flash of light and suddenly Nisei was sitting there, a fully human carbon copy of Togo. He flexed his fingers and inspected his hands. “That solves a couple problems, at least.” He smirked.

“Hey!” I said, and ruffled his neat black hair. He scowled and flattened it. “You're human!”

“No.” He shook his head. “I just look like it. I'm still paper and light. Fake.” It sounded like his name, which had the same meaning.

“I thought tanuki had to put a leaf on their head to transform,” Meiko said, smiling.

“I don't,” he said simply.

“Unfortunately, I don't think this will count as human enough to use the Summer Driver,” Rou said, poking at Nisei's arm. Nisei shot him a look but allowed it.

“But I can do other things. I will have to talk to Togo about fighting. Maybe he will be more amiable if I do not share his body the entire time.” Nisei said.

Just then, Akito's mother came back in with a tray of cakes. “Oh! You changed your shirt. Where did Akkun go?” she asked as she set the tray down and divvied up the cakes.

Nisei stood up sharply and bowed at a fifty degree angle. “Please excuse me. I am Meian Nisei. Pleased to meet you.”

“Oh. Oh no. Did you take over Togo again? Is he okay?” she fretted. Nisei straightened up and shook his head.

“No, he's fine,” Akito called, pulling Togo in with his arm over Togo's shoulders. “I don't know how my little bro got taller than me. It's rude. Oh.” He saw Nisei. “Hey there.”

Togo stared at him, not saying anything as he tried to process this new information.

“I still want to fight, Togo. But, I will make due like this for now,” Nisei said, and bowed to him as well.

“You have my face,” Togo said.

“Like I said, it's the only one I've known. I am sorry.” Nisei said.

“Hm.”

“This is confusing,” Akito's mom said. “But Nisei-kun, you're welcome here anytime.”

“Yeah, you're the littlest bro,” Akito said, and sat down. “Cake!”

 

 


	43. Pink

Later, we left Nisei and Togo at the house. The three of us crept back to the Kamitori arcade. “Is it clear?” Meiko asked, and Sharky zoomed off to check. She came back quickly.

“NO INK!” she said cheerfully.

“Let's not linger,” Rou said, and immediately headed to his bike. I followed, relieved to see my bike intact. I had grown fond of it. It was actually kind of strange that I had only had it for a year. Less than that.

“Is there anything else we need here?” Akito asked. “In case this is the last time we can come?”

“We won't abandon it for long, Aki Aki,” Meiko said, and punched his arm.

“Ow, I know. But it's better to be safe than sorry,” Akito said. Rou nodded and disappeared upstairs. He returned with a heavy laptop back filled with his equipment.

“Just in case,” he said.

I nodded. “To the hospital, then?” I asked.

The others nodded and we set off.

Nothing looked out of the ordinary when we arrived. There weren't any cars in the parking lot. “Maybe we missed them,” I said, half hopeful and half disappointed. The last time I had saw Akito's father had been very bad for me.

“Let's check inside,” Akito said, leading the way. “He could have poked around inside even if he's already left.”

Inside, the hospital had improved a great deal. It was clean, and furnishings that were broken or worn out with time had been cleared away and some of them had been replaced. Akito had even started interviewing people to lead the hospital. With luck, we hoped to get the hospital running by next April.

Nothing seemed out of place in the lobby, but Rou glanced towards both wings. “Let's spread out. You two take the east wing, and we'll take the west wing,” Rou said, directing me and Meiko to go together.

Meiko nodded and took my hand, leading the way. We stopped to check each room as we walked.

“How are you feeling?” she asked, as I peeked into one of the offices.

I stopped in my tracks and thought about it. “I guess... I'm glad Togo and Nisei are okay. I know it's complicated for Nisei, but he was afraid about not being able to separate from him...”

“I know,” she said, and we walked down the hall quietly. I stopped to check another room. “Do you think you'll be able to do it too? Separate, I mean.” The room was normal.

My words came slowly. “I do not know. If we defeat... You know.” I didn't want to say his name here. I had run into a lot of powerful ReMares here. “I would get back the memories that he took that contributed to Meiki's... to my death. But I don't know if all my memories now would stay mine, or if they're... mine?” I rubbed my forehead and shook my head. “I don't know how to talk about this. Togo had Nisei's memories, but they were hazy. It... would not be great to end up being a seven year old stuck in a 28 year old body.”

“You mean you're not?” Meiko glanced at me sidelong with a sly smile.

“Rude!” I said, and stuck my tongue out at her.

“Ah yes, you've convinced me. You are a mature adult,” she said sagely, nodding to herself.

“Come on! I'm being serious. It's a real worry I have,” I said, laughing despite myself.

She shoved my shoulder. “I know. I know.” We made it to the end of the hallway and went upstairs. “Have you tried it? What Rou said to Togo. Reaching inside and looking for the light, or whatever?”

“I am the light,” I said automatically, although moments where the rainbow voice had seemed to be not me and me at the same time surfaced in my memories. “I guess I can try,” I said. I closed my eyes tried to quiet my thoughts. There was the never ending chorus of my idiot brain telling me I was selfish, and my constant glee at how cute Meiko was...

There was the light. It was both rainbow and white at the same time, and as I reached for it, it became a butterfly.

“Hello,” she said, slightly amused.

“Are you-?” I started asking.

“We have gotten a little confused, haven't we?” she said, and suddenly I had a sense of my perspective shifting and not shifting, like when I became Hime and made copies of myself. I saw myself also a butterfly but more blatantly rainbow, watching her. I saw her, watching me. Me, not me, me. It was sort of the same, and not. Streams of light connected us.

“What are we?” I asked.

“I am the Bright Lady. You... I knew Meiki's memories. Spirits preserve them. Like a copy. I thought if I kept us separated as much as I could, you would grow strong enough that I could leave them here as a soul... But I haven't been able to do it. I have been missing something. And lately... Because of how we fight together, we just get more and more tangled up together. I'm sorry.”

“So... I am still Meiki?” I asked, not sure I understood. I had been so certain that I was her.

“You are borrowing a part of my soul, like I am borrowing your body. I believe you are Meiki, and you will be fine. Do you think you can stomach my presence a little longer?” She sounded so incredibly guilty.

Selfish, selfish, selfish. The thought beat against my brain like butterfly wing.

Wait.

Were those her fears? Those feelings of guilt and fear, that I had been lying, that I was a monster who stole a body... That I was doing this for my own good. That I was selfish. They were hers, and the intensity was nearly overwhelming. What did I feel?

I wanted to scoop her up and hug her, and also shake her for being an idiot, and suddenly understood Meiko's early outburst at me. “Stomach it? It has been an honor to be your champion.” I said instead.

“That was a-”

“A lie. To make it make sense for me, when you didn't want to reveal yourself. I know,” I said, feeling very gentle. “If you can trust me, I will do my best. I want to protect everyone. The spirits and the humans. And that means you too.”

She fluttered silently for a moment. “Go. There is someone in front of the hospital.” And she shoved me back to reality. Meiko was waiting patiently, leaning against the wall.

“Welcome back to earth, love. I've checked the rest of the hall. It's all clear. Aki Aki texted me and said their side is clear too,” Meiko said. “Did you find what you were looking for?”

I took stock of myself. Confronting her had eased some tangled strands of light connecting us, and I felt more relaxed than I had in a very long time.

Hungry too.

“I am hungry!” I said in wonderment as my stomach growled. “Like, for real!” I grabbed her hands and spun her around. “Meiko! I want to eat!”

She laughed and hugged me close, and I kept spinning her. “You do? That's wonderful! What would you like to eat? Anything you want, okay?”

I stopped spinning and let her go. “Wait, wait. There's someone in front of the hospital. We gotta check it out. But then we eat!” I said, and took her hand and ran down the stairs. We arrived in the lobby in a heap of giggles. Rou and Akito were waiting.

“Am I jealous?” Akito asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I don't know, are you?” Meiko asked, just as archly.

“There's someone outside,” I reminded them, continuing to the door. I was going to eat so many things, it was going to be glorious. I pushed the door open.

“Very interesting. Some areas of town have a total absence of M-waves, and some areas have readings similar to those beasts... It would be very useful to use this town for experiments,” said an unfamiliar, deep voice.

“Hey!” I called out, exiting the hospital. The others followed me out. And then I found what the deep voice was attached to, and stopped abruptly. “You... aren't a ReMare?” I asked. It seemed obvious. He was a massive man with a microscope for a head and a white lab coat. He wasn't ink or light, but he was definitely weird.

“Oh man, I think I had this dream during finals in university once,” Akito said.

“Oh, humans?” His lenses swiveled over at us. “Hm. Are you the source of the M-waves, I wonder?”

“What are M-waves? What are you? What are you doing here?” Rou advanced, getting out some of his own equipment to examine the weird guy.

“Oh, this is cute. Are you trying to do science? Adorable. Let me introduce myself. I am Igorug, the most talented member of the the Loroian Interstellar Science Division.”

“Rou, don't get to close,” Meiko said softly.

“Interstellar? Some kind of alien?” Rou demanded, checking his screen and then glancing at Igorug again. “Why are you here? You didn't answer.”

“Research, of course. There are some interesting phenomena here,” he said, and he focused his attention on me. “In fact... Are you the one they call Butterfly?”

“Uh...” I said, and glanced at the others. The only ones who called me that were ReMares. “I guess? I'm Meiki.”

“Fascinating,” Suddenly he was very close, leaning this way and that to get a better look at me. I leaned back, subconsciously putting a hand over the pocket where I keep my Driver. “I was informed that you are a corpse who has managed to stay animated? Very interesting. It seems to be taking a ridiculous amount of M-waves to accomplish that, but no matter, I'm sure your body will be useful nonetheless.”

Meiko put her driver to her waist. “You're not taking her.”

“Yeah, dude, not a chance,” Akito strolled forward, and put an arm around my shoulder.

Igorug leaned back and refocused on him. “You are biologically related to that other animated corpse. I'm afraid you're less useful to me. I suppose if you're volunteering, I can find a use for you.”

“Alright, enough,” I said, annoyed. I was hungry and he was blathering and creepy. “Either get the heck out of our town, or we'll do something about it.”

“I see. Subjects are not cooperating. Well then. I am incredibly busy, so...” There was a rumbling and an explosion in the parking lot behind him. When the smoke cleared, there were ten strange creatures wobbling around the lot. They were kind of lumpy and silver, and had ratlike facial features. Each of them had a string of numbers starting with the letter I, like “I0059338” or some variation burned into their sides. “Lab Rats, obtain the specimens,” he ordered, and they started advancing on us. One of them approached Rou and stole his computer, throwing it haphazardly to the side. Another one of the Lab Rats caught it, and offered it to Igorug, who swiveled his lenses disdainfully, but took it anyway. There was another explosion and two more Lab Rats appeared. These two looked bigger and stronger than the others, and their markings started with a Z instead of an I. “ZOLIBA! I don't need your help!” He stamped a foot and shoved aside the Lab Rat that handed him the computer. With a flash, Igorug disappeared.

“Hey!” Rou shouted, and threw a punch at the Lab Rat who stole his stuff. It stumbled to the side, but seemed entirely unphased. Rou shook his hand and made a face. “Ow.”

“Henshin!” Meiko said, and her transformation light knocked aside another one. Aside from being pushed aside, it seemed unaffected by the light. A ReMare would have fried.

“Henshin!” I shouted, and the boys echoed me. I swiped my Driver with the Oni Memoka, and my ultramarine blue armor appeared.

“Uh, guys,” Fall said, as he slashed at a Lab Rat with one of his glaives. The light passed through him like butter, but it didn't seem to hurt it at all. It kept advancing, and Fall gave ground. “Our weapons aren't working.”

“They aren't ReMares,” Spring said, punching the thieving Lab Rat again. It stumbled back and then tried to punch Spring. Spring sprung out of the way, and kicked it from behind. It sprawled out on the ground.

“Still can break them,” Winter said. She had one in a headlock and it did seem to be alarmed by the situation.

“Right,” I said, and landed a heavy punch on one. It fell back and sparked a little, but then the two Z Lab Rats grabbed me by my arms. I managed to yank one arm away from them, and hit it in the chest. It ignored the blow and grabbed my arm again. This time it had a better grip, and I couldn't pull away. Fall noticed, and kicked aside one of the Lab Rats and came running towards me.

There was a metallic sound, like a chain rattling followed by a solid thunk. The Lab Rat to my left staggered forward with a metal barb through it's shoulder, and a chain trailing from the other end. It went taut and a pink blur crashed into it. The pink form got to his feet, and posed dramatically, one foot on the big Lab Rat's head. His armor seemed a great deal lighter than ours. It was metallic pink with gold trim and white diamonds across the chest. His helmet looked like some sort of beaked animal was eating his black visor. It had small tufts of metal that suggested cat ears.

“ _Never fear_ , cuties! Ore-sama _is here_!” he proclaimed in a bewildering mixture of arrogant Japanese and English.

A foreigner? Akito's mom had mentioned something about a group from America being interested in the hospital. “ _Thank you_?” I replied in English, and turned to punch the second big Lab Rat in the face. It staggered back and sparked.

“ _Don't touch my mustache_ ,” he said in English, and saluted. I thought maybe he meant “You're welcome” because it kind of sounded like “Dou itashimashite” but ran through a terrible American accent.

Fall kicked the Lab Rat that had already started sparking and it fell to the ground and exploded. “Shit!” he said, hopping away.

Winter noticed, stopped twisting the head of the one she had captured, and shoved it aside, just as it also exploded.

The pink foreigner shot his metal chains at a couple of the Lab Rats. They wrapped around two of them, and pulled them in closer. Then the chains released them, and retracted into two small metal batons, that seemed like they shouldn't be able to hold that much chain within them. He proceeded to jab both of them with the sharp end of the batons, and kicked one of them away. It staggered back towards Spring, who kicked it in the head. It went down and started sparking. Spring immediately was out of the way, attacking another one, before it exploded.

I traded blows with the big Z Lab Rat. It was sparking, but it was holding up a lot better than the smaller Lab Rats.

The second Z Lab Rat lumbered up, knocking the Pink guy off balance and into the arms of the little Lab Rat that he had been fighting. “Dang!” he exclaimed in Japanese, and used one of his batons to shoot another chain towards the hospital. He zipped backwards out of the Lab Rat's grasp, and crashed into another one that had wandered stupidly in his path. He continued muttering to himself in annoyed Japanese, which was starting to make me doubt that he was foreign. He rolled off the Lab Rat and sprang into a defensive posture, watching it warily, but it gave up the ghost and exploded. “Yeah! And stay down!” He cheered as if that was exactly what he had intended to happen the entire time.

I smashed my helmet against the Z Lab Rat that I was fighting, and it went down, sparking wildly. I ran at the other one, and it exploded behind me just as I punched the second Z Lab Rat in the gut. As it stumbled back, Fall shoved it back to me and I delivered a round house kick to it's face.

The Pink guy shot at again with his chain and took advantage of it being off balance to drag it across the parking lot. It spat up a shower of sparks as it hit the curb, and exploded. The Pink guy glanced up at the sky for a second, and when nothing seemed to happen he threw himself back into the fray. He shouted “ _Gryphon Love Me Chain_!” in English, and the chains of his weapons glowed pink for a moment, before animating like massive snakes. They curved and zipped to hit each of the remaining Lab Rats, zagging out of the way to avoid hitting any of my friends. Then he pulled his arms back, and all of the chains recoiled in the same way, hitting the Lab Rats a second time. They started sparking and exploded one by one.

“Haa,” he said, and his armor disappeared in a flash of pink light. A young Japanese man with bleach blond hair that fell in an artfully curly mess around his face appeared, jumping around shouting. “Did it! We did it!” He wore a pink sweater that looked impossibly soft and was at least three sizes too big for him, over bronzed skinny jeans.

There was a chorus of power down sounds as we swiped our transformations clear. “Hey, thanks,” I said.

He stopped jumping around to look at us. “Ah! And you guys are cute! _Lucky_!”

“Hold it, pudding head,” Rou said, marching over. “Where did you get a driver?” he demanded. Akito snickered and followed him more leisurely.

“A driver?” the boy tilted his head. “I suppose I could recommend one, but...” He straightened up and looked down his nose at Rou, which was a little silly, because although the boy was a couple of inches shorter than Rou. He was fairly tall, but Rou was still the number one string bean. “I'm afraid they would be out of your price range,” he said haughtily.

“What?” Rou asked. He looked angry and confused.

“You just called Miyamoto Aito, one of the richest guys in the country,” Akito started, struggling to keep a straight face.

“The world!” Aito amended, cheerfully.

“A pudding head,” Akito finished, giggling wildly.

“So?” Rou said. “He's a pudding head.” Akito also had bleach blond hair, but he refreshed it regularly so he never had dark roots.

“And you're a cotton candy head,” Aito said, apparently not bothered at all. “Excellent choice on the color.” He put his hands on his hips. “Now, you know who the glorious Aito-sama is, of course, but who in the world are you guys?”

“Meiaki Akito,” Akito said, bowing dramatically. “It is an honor to meet you, Miyamoto-san. I collect some of your toys.”

“Ah! A fan!” Aito clapped his hands together. “And I've heard that name before... Are you that senator's son?”

“Nah,” Akito said casually. “Surprising amount of Meiaki around here. No relation.”

Meiko rolled her eyes at him, “Don't lie to him, Aki Aki. Sorry, sir. I'm Koda Mei. Most people call me Meiko.”

“I'm sure I understand,” Aito said, flashing a smile at Akito, “Aki Aki was it? And Meiko. A pleasure to meet you. Please feel free to call me Aito. We've fought together!”

“I appreciate it, Aito. I'm Meiki, and he's Meiji Rou,” I gestured at Rou, who had crossed his arms and was glaring at Aito, apparently not in the mood to offer up his own name. “He didn't mean a driver for a car. He meant one of these,” I said, taking off my Time Driver from my waist and shaking the cellphone sized transformation device. “It's how we transform.”

“Oh! Aito-sama has an amulet,” he said, holding up his wrist. A bronze chain was wrapped around his wrist a few times, holding a big bronze beast medallion on the back of his arm. “The _beautiful, amazing, powerful, glorious_ Gryphon Lady gave it to me.”

Meiko glanced at me to see if I understood the English he stuffed in the middle of his sentence. I shrugged. “Beautiful, amazing, powerful, glorious. It seems she's pretty great?” I translated.

“She is!” he beamed at me.

“Just say it in Japanese,” Rou muttered.

“Oh, I am so sorry that my English goes over your pretty cotton candy head, Meijirou-chan,” Aito said, clearly not sorry in the least. “It's just, I have been studying abroad for so long. It is a hard habit to break.”

Rou's mouth thinned, and I moved to put a hand on his shoulder to restrain him if necessary. He shot me look that said murder. “It's alright. I can translate,” I said, soothingly. “So... Do you usually fight those guys?”

“Sure, I'm the leader of the Power Rangers, after all.” This was said with such a smug expression that I wondered if it was true. He dropped it and shrugged, “Although I was shocked they showed up all the way here. Normally they stick around the city where I go to school. It was lucky I was visiting for a major toy convention in Tenjin.”

“I thought about going to that but...” Akito shrugged. “We've been busy with New Year's shenanigans.” That was the understatement of the year.

“Ah well, I am also here for that,” Aito said distastefully referring to the holidays. “I had to miss throwing a party for my lovely subordinates. But I suppose it's worth it to show my face to my adoring fans.”

“We talked about that on the radio, didn't we?” Meiko said. She was quieter than usual. I wondered if he was making her feel shy. She liked a lot of hero stuff, and from what I remembered, Miyamoto Aito was pretty famous for producing shows and making toys for a lion's share of the market. Especially robots.

“Oh yeah... Aito was mentioned on the guest list, huh?” I said.

“And then I saw the news about there being weird monsters here, and I had to-” he complained, but then seemed to put our words together belatedly and stopped, straightening his posture and schooling his expression to polite blandness. “You're reporters?” he said in a dignified voice, “Why didn't you say so?”

I shrugged. “If you heard about weird monsters, you probably heard our show.”

“ _Interesting..._ ” He tapped his lips with one finger. “Heroes who also report the monsters they fight. That does sound very useful... Hm...”

“Shut up already! What does Igorug want? What the hell are those things? Why are they here?” Rou shook off my hand, his patience gone. “Well? Answer me!”

Aito gave him a cool look, “Shut up or answer? Which is it, cotton candy-kun?”

Akito snickered, and Rou glared at him. “Which is it, Jiro?” Akito asked, in a sing song voice.

“I hate you,” Rou said to Akito, which only goaded his laughter. Rou crossed his arms and returned his angry gaze to Aito. “Tell me.”

“Please?” Aito said, raising an eyebrow. Jiro refused to budge. Aito sighed and shook his head dramatically. “I suppose. Since you asked so politely. I have no idea what Igo-chan wants. And those things are failed experiments or something. Probably made of people and robots. It's a disgusting affront to robotics, if you ask me, an expert.” He paused and wrinkled his nose. “He might be looking for spare parts or something. This is a hospital, isn't it?”

 

“It isn't opened yet,” Akito said, managing to calm down for a moment.

“He did say something about taking Meiki,” Meiko said softly. “And something about how some areas in town had strong M-waves, and some areas had absolutely none...”

“Ugh, I have no idea what M-waves are, but he's always babbling about them. And his nasty robots do it too,” Aito said, waving a hand dismissively.

“It might be related to the spirits,” Meiko said, and glanced at Rou. “There are areas in town that are still forgotten...”

Rou's eyes flashed pink, and his angry expression relaxed and became more thoughtful as Ki took over. “If he's the one contacting Akkun's father, he might be looking to do something to the blots. And what he said about Togo and Meiki is very concerning.”

“Yeah, and our weapons didn't really work on the Lab Rats,” I said. “Which sucks.”

“If Igo-chan is after a cute lady like you, I'll stick around to protect you,” Aito said breezily. “Cause this fight wasn't even that bad. Zololo didn't even make any of them big.” This seemed to disappoint him.

“Zololo?” I asked.

“Zolibo? Zoloft? I don't care what her name is.” Aito shrugged, and dismissed it. “She makes them suuuuper big. Like bigger than the building!”

“Is that a good thing? They were already big enough,” Akito said, raising an eyebrow at the young man's enthusiasm.

“Who knows?” Aito's voice lowered to sound spooky and mysterious. He couldn't keep up the expression for very long before grinning again. “It's more fun to fight them, though.”

It didn't seem like he intended to elaborate further, so I stretched. “Should we get out of here? I'm hungry.”

“Yeah, I want to make sure Togo is o... WHAT. MEIKI!” Akito's voice raised up to a gleeful shriek, and he half tackled me, clinging to my back. I stumbled forward, but remained standing.“You're hungry? Can I make you lunch? What do you want? I'll make whatever!”

I laughed, and reached for his legs to help support him in an awkward piggyback ride. “I'd like that. Actually, curry sounds good.”

“I can do curry,” Akito said happily, and leaned his head on top of mine. “I'm so happy for you. What happened?”

“I...” I glanced over at Aito, who looked more solemn and distant than I had seen in the brief time I had known him. As soon as he noticed my attention, he flashed me a brilliant smile. “I sorted things out with the Bright Lady. Sort of. We were all tangled.”

“So you're not?” Rou asked, sounding confused and relieved.

“Kinda?” I said.

“I see,” he said, and sighed.

“If Aito-san is coming with us, then I think we need to share a motorcycle...” Meiko said, as we walked over to the bikes.

Aito made a face, “No... No, I don't think so. I have a car.” He gestured towards the road, where an obnoxiously pink Hummer was parked at the side of the road. It seemed like such an impractical vehicle, especially in Japan, where streets off the main road in any given neighborhood could be barely big enough for one car to go through, yet still be a two way street. A Hummer just wouldn't have a chance.

“Then shall we ride with you? It'd be easier, I think.” Akito said, palming his Pair Device, which resulted in his bike transforming back into a regular bicycle.

“AH! That was cool!” Aito shouted in surprise. “Do they all do that? Show me, show me!”

If I wasn't mistaken, it looked like Rou had a small sneaking smile on his face. “Of course they all do that.” He showed him his, transforming it back and forth, and then into a side car. His was actually fairly new. His old bike was cool to start with, but it hadn't been able to do all the things the Synchrocycle could do until he became Spring. “See?”

“ _Amazing!_ I want one,” Aito said, pulling out a checkbook. “How much?”

Rou looked a little startled, “Uh. I can make you a custom bike, I guess, but I don't think it will be able to do all that. It's connected to the power we use to transform. Plus that microscope weirdo stole all my data... I couldn't make another one right now, even if you did use the same energy to transform..”

“Wait, you made it?” Aito asked, getting into Rou's face, his eyes shiny.

Rou leaned back. “Yes?” he said reluctantly.

“Ehhh, that's cool!” Aito said, appreciatively.

“Of course it is,” Rou said, trying to sound annoyed again, although he was clearly enjoying having his ego stroked.

 

 


	44. Chimera

The cafe still felt off limits, so we all ended up back at my apartment. It was crowded, with five adults, and then Akito insisted upon inviting Nisei and Togo over, because he was worried about Togo.

Aito was not particularly happy about it. He perched on one of my kitchen chairs as if he didn't want to touch anything. “This place is so small. It would be better to go to my hotel room. It's much, much bigger than this.”

Akito was tying up the cords of an apron. “Does your hotel have a kitchen?”

“Of course it does! What kind of hotel room doesn't have a kitchen?” Aito asked, looking genuinely confused.

“Most of them don't,” Meiko said, pouring tea for everyone.

“HI! WHO ARE YOU?” Sharky came zooming in from my room.

“I? I am Miyamoto Aito-sama. And you?” Aito said haughtily, but watched her closely, fascinated.

“I AM SHARKY!” she shouted.

“Did you make her too?” Aito asked Rou, clearly impressed.

“Sort of. She's a spirit in an origami made of special paper. It reacts with spirits to become more like a metallic robot body,” Rou explained. Aito made an appreciative noise.

“So cool. I bet my Lady would like her,” Aito said, smiling softly.

“WHAT IS LADY LIKE?” Sharky asked, curious.

“Beautiful, like you, but much, much bigger. And pink. And a Gryphon,” he said, pleased.

“So, nothing like her,” Akito muttered.

Sharky swam circles around him, charmed. “THAT SOUNDS GOOD! SHARKY USED TO BE MUCH BIGGER BUT IT WAS NOT GOOD.”

“Oh?” Aito asked, “But surely-”

“She used to be a ReMare. If a spirit gets infected by a blot, it becomes a ravenous memory eating machine,” I said, explaining. “Those were probably the monsters you heard us talking about.”

“Right, yeah, I think I did hear about that. Memory monsters, huh?” he asked.

And then the doorbell rang and the rest of the party got there. We filled them in about what happened, and Aito retreated to his cellphone. Togo helped his brother cook, and Nisei challenged me to a game of Othello, which he had brought with him. I grinned fiercely as I accepted the challenge. It was a game I was very good at. Rou went through the materials that he still had, trying to figure out exactly what he had lost to Igorug.

“Are you alright?” Meiko asked, sitting down next to Aito and setting down a cup of hot tea for him. I half watched them from the corner of my eye as I made my next move in the game.

He glanced up from his phone and flashed her a smile. “I am fine. An-chan... He's one of the other Power Rangers. Like my second in command or whatever. He sent me a mail saying that they fought some super big Lab Rats without me.” He was still smiling, but he sounded sad.

“You fought some Lab Rats without them, too, didn't you?” Meiko said.

Aito looked at her for a long moment, and then said, “Yeah... Yeah. You're right.” It sounded like he was psyching himself up. “I did, didn't I?” He started typing rapidly on his phone, and then stuck his tongue out at it.

“If you're distracted, you're going to lose,” Nisei said calmly as he changed some of my pieces to black.

I studied the board for a moment, and took my turn. “I still have more pieces than you.”

“That could change at any moment,” he said, quickly taking his own turn, which did shift things towards his favor. I frowned, and stared at the board.

“Food's almost done,” Akito said in a sing song voice, before draping himself over my shoulder.

“You're distracting me,” I said, making no effort to shove him off. I made my move.

It tricked Nisei. He went exactly where I wanted him to.

“Heh,” I said, grinning as I quickly made my next move.

“Fool! You've fallen right into my trap!” Akito said, mimicking my voice poorly.

“Shush you,” I said, this time actually pushing him away.

He overreacted, letting himself slump to the floor, his head resting at Aito's feet. “You mean you're not playing sports game anime?” Akito said, pretending to pout.

“An Othello anime?” Aito asked, sounding thoughtful. “It could be good. The contrasting color designs between the main hero and antagonist would be marketable.”

“Nerd,” Rou muttered, as he pulled out a small black box from his bag. “Ah! I do still have it!”

“ _Excuse you,_ I am not a nerd. I am a very successful businessman, thank you very much,” Aito said, and made a face at him too.

“Is that your backup hard drive?” Meiko asked.

“It is,” Rou said, sounding pleased. “I haven't lost everything, at least. I'm going to kick that stupid telescope guy in the head for stealing my computer if he shows up again.”

“Microscope,” Akito corrected pleasantly, before pushing himself up, and jumping to his feet. He went to wash his hands, and started plating food for everyone.

“Whatever,” Rou said, although he wasn't able to sound as irritable as I knew he wanted. He was too happy about finding his information again.

Nisei got one of the corners of the board, and had started a very methodical approach to stamping out all of the white pieces. I scrambled to get in places where he couldn't easily switch me back. The game ended quickly, and it looked close.

“You're pretty good,” I said, as I picked up the white pieces to count them.

Togo took the plates from Akito and started delivering them to all of my guests.

“Ow!” Nisei shouted, as Togo elbowed him in the head.

“Sorry,” Togo said, and smiled a thin smile at him, before setting down a plate of curry for both of us. “Your big head was in the way.”

“Aren't you two twins?” Aito asked.

“No!” they said in unison.

“That doesn't exactly help your case, bros,” Akito said, taking off his apron, and coming to sit down. “Are you admitting to having a big head, Togo?”

“Shut up,” Togo said, crossing his arms. “I didn't mean literally.”

“More importantly, I won,” Nisei said, putting the rest of the game away. “I told you you were too distracted.”

“Eh, next time,” I shrugged. “I'm starving.” I clapped my hands together to say thanks for the food, and dug in.

It was so good. The rice was soft and fluffy, and the curry was just the right level of spicy, and all of the vegetables were tender and delicious. “It's so good,” I said though a mouthful of food. I might have had tears in my eyes. I won't confirm or deny that. For the first food that hadn't tasted like the worst cardboard in months, it was heaven. “I'm not dead, am I? This isn't heaven, is it?” I asked.

Akito grinned. “See, there's the ringing endorsements I've missed. Togo, take a page out of your senpai's book and praise me.”

Togo gave him a disgusted look, “Is it really okay for a doctor to demand praise?”

“Not a doctor anymore, bro,” Akito said breezily. “I'll do what I want.”

At the end of our little party, Aito yawned and stretched. “Tired? You're welcome to stay here, if you want. I've got a futon,” I asked.

“Why would he want to stay here? He's got a hotel room bigger than this,” Rou said.

Aito yawned again, but pointed at Rou, “What he said. Although if you want, you can join me?” He raised an eyebrow suggestively.

“Are you trying to seduce our Meiki?” Akito said, scandalized. “Meiko! Did you hear him?”

Meiko gave him a cool glance, “I heard him. Are you jealous?”

“Now, now. No need to be jealous. There's plenty of me to go around,” Aito said.

“Oh, well, in that case,” Akito grinned.

“Ugh, why are you flirting in front of me?” Togo made a grossed out face, and stormed out of the apartment.

“Ah, oops. I forgot that pisses him off. Maybe another time,” Akito said. “I better go get him. Good night, lovelies.” He gave us a lazy salute, before heading out to find Togo.

I glanced at the others. Meiko and Rou were working on my computer. Nisei had curled up in a corner with one of my old media text books. “I think we're all going to pass, Aito. It's been lovely meeting you, and I appreciate your help,” I said. “If you're still in town tomorrow, you're welcome to show up at the radio station. It would be fun to interview you.”

Aito tapped his lips with his finger thoughtfully, “I suppose I can make time to play with the press. Since you helped me today. And the great Aito-sama is incredibly generous. Alright. I will join you tomorrow.” He bowed dramatically, and let himself out of the apartment.

“Weirdo,” Rou muttered under his breath.

Meiko slapped him gently on the arm. “Be nice. He did help us.”

“Doesn't make him less of a weirdo,” Rou said.

The next morning at the radio station, he showed up in a black suit with a pink tie. It was very well cut, and he looked handsome.

“Good morning, ladies, gentlemen!” Aito said as he entered the station.

“You must be Miyamoto Aito. Meiki said to expect you,” Nawata-san said.

“She did! But she did not tell me to expect such a vision of beauty! It is a pleasure to meet you,” he said, laying the charm on thick.

Nawata bought it. She smiled and blushed. “Oh, you. She's over there, getting ready.” She waved a hand towards me.

I waved back, and he came over to me. I ran him through rules and expectations, which he nodded distractedly to.

“I've been interviewed on air before, Meiki-chan. I know what to do,” he said. He paused for a moment. “Although if you would, don't bring up... you know.” He tapped the amulet on his wrist.

I nodded. Last night after he left, I had looked at some of the American news of the Power Rangers, just to have an idea of what was going on, and it seemed that there was some conflicting reports as to whether or not he was a Power Ranger. Some videos showed him transforming right in front of a crowd, and some press conferences showed him swearing that he couldn't remember being a Power Ranger, and that he didn't think he was one. It had seemed honest. I don't know what had caused him to forget, but I definitely could sympathize. “And that is why I double check,” I said with a smile, as Meiko came up to us.

“The booth is ready. Shall we begin?” she asked, bowing her head slightly to Aito.

“I'm ready!” I said. The interview was pleasant. Aito did, in fact, know what he was doing. Despite all of his silliness yesterday, he was composed and a pleasant conversationalist. He talked about his toy lines, and about the convention, and his time in America.

After the interview, Okuda-san invited him into her office.

“Excuse me!” Nisei announced before entering, carrying a tray of tea. A moment later he returned, looking annoyed

“Are you okay?” Meiko asked.

“I am fine,” he said stiffly. Meiko gave him a look and he scowled. “I don't know. It feels like there is something outside, but it doesn't feel right.”

“Like a ReMare?” I asked, trying to concentrate. All I got was a flash of bright light. I flinched and squinted. It seemed like the Bright Lady didn't feel like letting me use those senses.

“I don't know,” he repeated.

“It's almost time for our break. We can check it out,” I said.

“If it's not like our monsters, then we should probably bring our guest along,” Meiko said quietly.

“Mm,” I nodded. A few minutes later, Aito came out of the meeting, chatting happily with Okuda-san.

“Miyamoto-san! Do you have lunch plans? We can show you the city,” I said.

“I'd love to,” he said. Some of the staff, including Nawata-san and Okuda-san, walked him to the door to bow him out. He waved to them and blew a kiss before following us out.

“So, where was this strange thing?” I asked Nisei.

“Strange thing? I thought we were getting lunch?” Aito said, balancing on the curb as we walked.

“We will,” I said emphatically. Now that I could eat lunch I definitely was not going to skip it. “But we might have business to take care of first.”

As if on cue, a booming voice came from a nearby park. “Haha! This experiment is going splendidly! So many useful bodies! Zolibo will be jealous.”

“Ugh, what a pain,” Aito grumbled, but he joined us in hurrying to the park.

Igorug was pacing the park, observing a Lab Rat harassing a group of people. The Lab Rat looked like the ones we fought before, with twisted silver parts and parts that looked suspiciously human. However, it also had a shiny... drippy... black wing embedded on one side of his back. Half of it's face also dripped with ink. Down the side of it, it had a brand proclaiming it to be “I99999B.” It lurched forward and grabbed one of the people, and as soon as the Lab Rat touched them, the light went out of them, and they became Forgotten.

“How the heck did he get a hold of blots?” I muttered, grabbing my driver.

“Senator Meiaki,” Igorug announced, turning around to face us. “He has been quite accommodating with my research.” His lenses shifted. “Hello, human expert!” He sounded like a parent going along with a child's wild imagination. “Are you here to bask in the genius of my newest creation?”

“Lab Rats don't do it for me, Igo-chan. Gotta do better than that,” Aito shook his head, as if regretful.

“Unfortunately your favorite playmates are still damaged. Still, I'm sure you'll find this one quite fascinating,” Igorug said, and clapped his hands. The weird Lab Rat blot turned it's head and came shambling over.

“Excuse me, Miyamoto-sama. Are you friends with this?” Nisei asked, polite but there was clear anger and disdain behind his words.

Aito answered him by raising up the wrist with the medallion and shouting “Gryphon Power, Metal!” And in a flash of pink, his armor appeared. “Not till he stops putting gross people parts in his robots,” the Pink Ranger said, and shifted his stance to something more aggressive. He aimed one of his weapons at I99999B, and shot the chain off at it. The chain hit him in the inky wing, and went right through, embedding itself in a tree a few meters behind the monster. “Uh.” The Pink Ranger said, and then I99999B started walking towards him, completely ignoring the chain in his wing. “Uhhhh?!” Aito said again, alarmed.

“Interesting! Traditional weapons, even those with strong M-waves seem to have no effect on the hybrid,” Igorug said, focusing on the fight.

“We better help him,” Meiko said.

I nodded. The two of us raised up our drivers and shouted “Henshin!”

“This is your Year! Let's go, Let's go! Yeah!” My belt chimed, and white light shimmered around me as my armor appeared.

“Winter, Howl!” Meiko stepped through the sigil, and Winter stepped out the other side.

“AGH!” Nisei yelled and tackled Aito out of the way as the monster got closer to him.

“What the?” Aito objected angrily, and shoved Nisei off. “I had it!”

I rushed forward to engage the monster, distracting it from them.

“That thing is part blot, sir,” Nisei said, standing back up and dusting himself off. “You touch it, and you can say good bye to your memories.”

“She's touching it,” The Pink Ranger whined, pointing at me, as I traded punches with it. Perhaps it would have been better to pick a form with a faster weapon, but I felt good anyway.

“She's got armor,” Nisei said.

“I've got armor!” Aito said, pointing at his own helmet.

“Is it made from spirit energy?” Nisei asked.

Aito shrugged, “It's magic.”

I shoved the blot infested Lab Rat back towards Winter, who struck it with her massive sword. It sizzled the ink, but didn't seem to do anything to the Lab Rat parts. “Don't risk it. Try to hit it without getting too close.”

“I can do that!” Aito said, scrambling back up. He shot the I99999B again with his chain, and this time it wrapped around the thing's arm and found purchase. He recalled the chain, and dragged the Lab Rat towards me. I drew my Prism Blade, and held it in front of me. As it got close, I slashed it with the light sword. It grabbed onto me with a free hand, to stop the Pink Ranger's pull.

Winter saw that we had it handled, and turned her attention towards Igorug. “Why did Senator Meiaki give you a blot?” she demanded, advancing on him. “How?” She stressed the word.

I fell off balance as the chain continued to pull the monster. Aito swore and let the chain go slack. “ _Sorry_!” he shouted in English. I kicked the monster off my chest with both legs and hopped back to my feet.

“No problem!” I said, and spun around to face the hybrid monster again.

“How? I knew humans are incredibly stupid, but this is a new low.” Igorug spoke slowly, as if to a child, “He gave it to me, in exchange for some information. Do you need me to dumb it down further?”

“Hn,” Winter grunted, and and ran at him, sword raised.

He stepped aside, almost lazily, and clotheslined her. She fell to the ground. Igorug bent over, and picked her up by the front of her poncho. Winter grabbed his hands to keep him from strangling her, and kicked her legs.

“Ah! Not good, not good!” the Pink Ranger said, flinging an arm in his direction, and shooting the chain at Igorug. I ran towards him too, abandoning the Lab Rat Blot.

Igorug casually knocked away Aito's chain, which embedded harmlessly into a tree, and flung Winter at me. The impact knock the air out of me, and I fell to the ground. He walked over to us, Winter pushed herself to her feet, staggering forward and throwing herself into a run, aiming to tackle him. Igorug kicked her roughly in the side. Breathing hard, I got to my knees, my sword raised. “If you think you can beat me with that silly flashlight, then you're even more foolish than your friend,” Igorug said, crossing his arms, staring at me with disinterest.

The Pink Ranger yelled and came zipping along the chain hooked to the tree, aiming at Igorug. The Pink Ranger crashed into Igorug's microscope face. Igorug knocked him aside, and the Ranger rolled up to his feet, ready to attack again. “My lenses! Agh!” Igorug said, scrambling to readjust them. “You are an inconvenience!” With that, he disappeared in a flash of light.

“Yeah, and you're an ugly jerk!” The Pink Ranger called after him, making a rude gesture at where Igorug had just been standing.

“You alright?” I asked, lending Winter a hand to help her up.

“I'm fine,” she said, irritably. “Let's crush this thing before it gets loose.”

That thing had lumbered towards Nisei, who was couching down, ready to throw a punch at it. The Pink Ranger looked alert, and bolted out suddenly, to kick the Lab Rat Blot in the chest. The blot stumbled back and started sparking a little. The Pink Ranger also stumbled back, looking left and right, like he was lost.

“Where's An-chan? Where's Fi-chan?” he called out, his voice rising in panic, “Where are my friends?”

“I was fine!” Nisei snapped, irritably.

“You don't have armor. Didn't want you to get hurt,” The Pink Ranger said, looking away. “Where are they?” His voice had real fear in it, so I ran over to him.

“It's alright. They're in America, aren't they? We're here to help, okay?” I said soothingly.

“No, you don't understand. They were with me, and … If they're gone... I'll be...” I couldn't see his face through his helmet, but it sounded like he was trying very hard not to cry.

“You're not alone,” I said. Winter was trying to slice the wing off of the Lab Rat Blot, but it kept dodging out of the way. “Don't worry. You'll remember in a minute. Wait here.” I patted him on the shoulder, and ran over to join Winter. I dropped to a slide, kicking it's legs out from under it. As it fell, Winter got the hit she wanted, slicing through the wing with a long sizzle. The disconnected ink fell to the ground with a splat.

I hopped to my feet, just as Winter's belt announced, “White Out!” She spun her sword, light blazing around it, and smashed it into the monster. The remaining ink sloughed off, and it fell to the ground, sparking like it was about to explode.

The Pink Ranger sighed and seemed to calm down.

The sky went dark. I looked up, and a massive black space ship appeared above us. The Pink Ranger hopped to his feet and whooped, his mood totally shifted. “Do it! I dare you!” he shouted, shaking his fist at the sky.

“Do what?” I asked.

A big tube dropped down from the space ship, and snaked down to hover above the fallen Lab Rat.

“Get back, get back, it's gonna get big!” the Pink Ranger said, laughing as he grabbed Nisei's arm. He dragged Nisei to the edge of the park.

Yellow ooze dripped from the tube, and hit the Lab Rat. And just as Aito said, the monster swelled and started growing. I yelled, and grabbed Winter's arm, half dragging her to join the others. The Lab Rat was at least fifty meters tall when it stopped growing. “Shit. How are we supposed to fight that?” I asked, staring up at it. Even when we fought the giant Tigra, she had been only a fraction of his height.

“Leave it to the very handsome Pink Ranger,” the Pink Ranger said, pointing his thumb at his chest, as he stepped forward toward the enormous monster.

“How?” Nisei said, incredulous. “You'll get crushed.”

The Pink Ranger laughed and looked up to the sky. Suddenly, there was a metallic screeching noise, and a pink shape appeared. It landed neatly in front of us. It was a massive, metallic pink Gryphon robot. The Pink Ranger whooped again, and ran towards it. “ _Hello, beautiful! Let's do this!_ ” He jumped and disappeared into the huge machine. Was this his illustrious Gryphon Lady? She wriggled and stretched her wings. Even as big as she was, she was not nearly a match for the massive monster. Or, at least, so I thought, until she sprang into the air, raking it with her front claws. The Lab Rat tried to take a swipe at her, and she gracefully loop-de-looped her way out of danger, before slashing at the monster again. Aito and the Gryphon were clearly toying with the massive monster. It was like watching a cat tormenting a mouse, if that cat could also fly. If I squinted, I could see the cockpit of the beast, and the Pink Ranger manning the controls with an intensity that he didn't have on land.

For all his dumb crashing into things and impulsive flailing when fighting on his own, in the Gryphon, he was precise and graceful.

“Should we get farther away from here?” Winter asked nervously as the Lab Rat's foot slammed down in front of us, shaking the park.

“Yeah, let's,” I agreed, and we ran farther out of the way. When I glanced back, the pink Gryphon had gotten her claws into the Lab Rat's back, and was savagely unbalancing it. It started to topple backwards, and at just the right moment, the Gryphon detached herself, and did a spiral to get out of the way, landing neatly to the side, just as the Lab Rat crashed into the ground, knocking over trees and a swing set. The Lab Rat sparked and exploded behind the Gryphon, before disappearing into smoke.

The Gryphon prowled over to us, before sitting down primly on her hind legs. The Pink Ranger appeared on her shoulder. “This is the Gryphon! Isn't she _beautiful_? Isn't she _amazing_?! She's the best!” He shouted down at us, patting the Gryphon on the side of her head.

“She's pretty amazing,” I agreed, awestruck.

He hopped down easily, and looked up at her and blew her a kiss. She made a sound that could have been laughter, before springing up into the air and flying off. Aito dropped his transformation in a flash of pink, and looked over at us proudly. “She's my partner. I love her.”

We followed suit and our belts chimed as we powered down. Aito had started doing a victory dance. “Let's get ice cream!” Aito said, grabbing Meiko's hands and pulling her to the sidewalk. She smiled slightly but pulled away.

“As good as that sounds, we should probably meet up with Rou and Aki Aki.” She glanced at me. I wanted ice cream. It had been such a long time. She smiled. “We can have ice cream with them.”

“Sure! _The more the merrier_!” he said, mixing languages again.

We met up with them at a small cafe near Aito's hotel, which was an incredibly impressive building for Oara. We told them what had happened with Igorug and the Lab Rat Blot.

Aito laughed nervously when I got to the part where he had launched himself at Igorug. “I haven't actually hit Igo-chan before. He tossed me aside like I was nothing.”

Meiko nodded in agreement. “More importantly, Rou, I think I know where your computer is.”

“Did you get it back? Where is it?” he asked.

“No. But he said he received the blots from Senator Meiaki in exchange for information,” Meiko said, glancing at Akito.

Akito crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. “So he's still mixed up with them, huh.”

“Seems like it,” I said. “Sorry, Akito.”

He made a rude noise in response. “It's whatever.”

“How long are you staying here?” Rou asked Aito. “If that thing makes a monster big again, we're not going to be able to take it on.”

“A couple more days,” Aito said reluctantly. “I have to go back to school soon. And my team needs me.”

Rou frowned. “Unfortunate... Could you summon your Gryphon again?”

“Here? In the building? No. Impossible,” Aito said, waving his hands frantically.

“Not in here, of course,” Rou said.

“He's jealous he didn't get to see the cool machine,” Akito told Aito matter of factually.

“As he should be,” Aito agreed sagely. “I'll ask her.” He closed his eyes for a moment, and then made a disappointed face. “I'd love to, but I really shouldn't if there isn't a fight. But she did say that she thinks she could get here if you need us. _Super fast!_ We haven't went that fast before.” He made a gesture demonstrating how fast it would be, obviously thrilled at the prospect.

“What if Igorug brings another blot monster to America?” Nisei asked. “His armor might as well be paper.” He pointed at Aito.

Rou thought about it for a moment. “I don't think he can. I don't think the blots can leave the city any more than the spirits can. But... I can give you some of these...” He made a handful of origami throwing stars, and passed them over to me. “Here. Can you write the kanji for... hm... Ward?”

“Sure,” I said, writing the kanji on each of them with the colorless Memoka. When they were finished, I gave them to Aito.

“They'll protect you, I think. As I said, I'm not entirely sure how it will work halfway across the world, but that's the best we can do.” Rou said.

“Thanks. It's better than nothing, probably.” Aito shrugged. “Plus the Gryphon Lady said that since she got a good idea of what kind of... anti-magic the blots are made of, she might be able to counter it herself.... Is what she said.” It sounded like he barely understood what she was saying, and was just relaying her message.

“You think so?” I asked, and licked ice cream off my spoon. It was so smooth and cold and sweet. Being able to eat was the best.

“One hundred percent!” Aito nodded. “I trust her.”

“Good,” I said, relieved that he wouldn't be left at the mercy of the ReMares.

We finished up our meal, and Aito gave me a hug. “ _Take car_ _e. It was lovely to meet you,_ ” I said in English.

I was rewarded with a brilliant grin. “ _You too!_ ” Aito responded in kind. He took Meiko's hand and bowed over it gentlemanly. Akito winked and did finger guns at Aito, who responded with a flirty wink and blew a kiss at Akito. “Maybe next time, _cutie,_ ” Aito said.

“Sure. If you're lucky.” Akito grinned.

Aito raised a hand to Nisei. “High touch!”

Nisei stared at him blankly. “What?”

“Raise your hand,” Aito commanded. Nisei hesitantly complied, and Aito slapped it.

“What was the purpose of that?” Nisei said, snatching his hand back.

“You protected me, yeah? We're friends,” Aito said. And then Aito turned to Rou for a handshake. Rou took his hand and gripped it hard.

“Keep in contact, okay? You're a pretty amazing mechanic, and I'd love to have you on board sometime,” Aito said.

“If I get to see this Gryphon of yours, sure,” Rou said.

“Got your priorities straight. I like it,” Aito said, grinning. “All of you! I had a lot of fun fighting with you. Let's meet again!” Aito waved, before heading to his pink Hummer to drive away.

 

 


	45. Lost

 

Rou and I were shopping again, this time for a new laptop and equipment. My computer was apparently useless garbage for anything beyond browsing the internet and making word documents. Which was, to be fair, all I used it for. Well, that and playing music. I had several external hard drives full of music.

I had suggested we go to Yamada Denki, or Best Denki, and Rou gave me a look like I was an idiot, and took me to a tiny, crowded specialty shop that was three blocks down from the cafe. A fat black cat sat on the counter, which no one sat behind.

“Are they open?” I asked, trying not to bump into anything.

“Yeah, she's probably in the back,” Rou said, wandering the isles. “Give her a moment. If she's busy, she won't come right away.”

“A friend of yours?” I asked.

“She was,” Rou said, with a frown. “She doesn't remember me.”

I put a hand on his shoulder. “I'm sorry.”

He shrugged. “She's the best in the business, so it's fine.”

It wasn't fine, but I let it stand. I followed him around as he picked several bits of computer junk, when finally a middle age woman with short hair, and an angular face showed up, carrying a box full of wires and talking into a headset.

“No, I will not. It's a health hazard and you know it. You'll have to buy new,” she said, and shooed the cat. The cat ignored her, and she rolled her eyes, and put the box next to the feline instead. “Do not call on this matter agai-” She glanced over at us and froze. “Rou? Is that you? It's been a while. What are you making now?”

Rou started, and threw his basket of supplies as if he had been caught red handed stealing it.

She raised an eyebrow at him. “What the hell?”

“You remember me?” Rou asked.

“How would I forget a cranky little punk nerd demanding weird shit all the time? Honestly, should I report you to the authorities? You're making a bomb or something, right?” she said, hands on her hips.

“He's not!” I objected. That was the last thing I needed right now.

“Oh hush, I know. You must be Meiki, right? I'm Kotone. Nice to meet you.” Before I had a chance to respond, she turned to Rou. “It's about time you bring her by,” she said, shaking a finger at him. Rou was biting his lip, looking like a sad puppy. Kotone frowned and looked concerned. “Are you alright? I was joking about reporting you.”

Rou nodded, opened his mouth to speak, closed it, and just nodded again. He thrust a list out at her.

“If you say so. If you're in trouble, I'd kick some asses, right?” Kotone said, punching her open palm.

He nodded again, a small smile back on his face.

She rolled her eyes, and checked the list. “Alright, alright. Let me see. I've got most of this. Let me check,” she said, distractedly retreating into the back again. The cat stared at me, and yawned.

“She remembers me,” Rou whispered, awed at first, and then his expression grew dark. “But mom didn't...”

I thought about it for a moment. So much had happened since we beat Shika. Togo and Nisei's situation had sort of taken the spot light. But I found that I could remember going to school with him. I could remember arguing over stupid things and having long deep conversations about the world. “Well... I remember you too? So it's possible that other people are starting to remember you too,” I said, slowly.

“I thought you might. Akkun said he remembers more now too,” Rou said. He still didn't look particularly happy about it.

“It might have been a different ReMare that took her memories,” I said.

“Or she's lying,” he said, crossing his arms.

“Why would she lie about that?” I asked, my eyebrows furrowed. His mom was a lot of things. Rash, irritable, and constantly stressed out, but I didn't think she was deliberately cruel.

“Embarrassment? Stubbornness?” He threw his hands up in annoyed bewilderment. “Who knows, with that woman!”

“Are you talking shit about me?” Kotone said as she came back from the back room, carrying another box. She shooed the cat again and it ignored her. “Beast,” she said, annoyed and sat the box on the floor.

“No, Kotone-san,” Rou said, and dutifully started picking up the mess he made, inspecting each one for damage.

“If you broke it, you bought it, kid,” she said. “Who are you talking about then?”

I sidled over to the cat, and started petting it. It purred, and closed it's eyes.

“I know!” he said, exasperate. “I was gonna buy them anyway.”

“And?” Kotone asked when he didn't answer the question.

“My mom _says_ she doesn't remember me,” he said. “Although she recently made the concession that maybe I was right.”

“You were happy about that,” I reminded him, skritching the cat's ears. It leaned into my hand, and I felt very happy.

“That was before I knew other people remembered me!” Rou said, throwing a package of cords back into his basket.

“Listen, I know you and your mom are like cats and dogs sometimes, but...” She looked distractedly at me. “Is Beast letting you pet him?” she asked, and then shook her head. “Your friend is alright, Rou.”

“Yeah, I'll keep her, I guess,” Rou said, standing back up with his basket.

“Gee, thanks,” I said.

“Anyway, I was saying... Your mom and you fight, but I know she loves you a ton. If she says she doesn't remember you, then she doesn't,” she said, and went to her computer on her counter to tabulate an invoice.

He grumbled and remained unconvinced.

“Why don't we go talk to her after this? She said she wanted to talk, remember?” I asked.

Rou was quiet for a moment, and then nodded. “Yeah. Let's do that.”

“Good. Now, let's discuss payment,” Kotone said, plucking a paper from her printer, and brandishing it at Rou.

Rou took it, and looked it over. He bickered over some prices with her, and she stubbornly pointed out a discount and refused to budge. He gave in, grumbling, before handing over the cash.

“Pleasure doing business with you!” Kotone said, saluting us as we left.

We dragged his new supplies back to my apartment, where he was staying. “You don't believe Kotone,” I said, as I watched him unpack. His back still looked tense, and his movements were harsher than they should be.

He stopped for a long moment, staring at the box. “I still think she lied. I did the same thing. I kept information from you because I was worried about how you'd take it.”

“That was different,” I said.

“We'll see,” Rou said.

A little while later, we pulled up in front of his mom's house. It was in the same neighborhood as my parents' old apartment building, and it made me feel a little sad. How long had it been since I had seen them?

“Call them,” Rou suggested when he noticed me staring at the building.

“Huh?” I said, and then realized what he said. “Oh, yeah. I should.” I turned to follow him to his mom's front door. The house was small, with well trimmed bushes. Unlike most Japanese houses, there actually was a garage. He hesitated on the doorstep. “I'm here. It'll be okay,” I reminded him.

“Shut up,” he said, and knocked on the door.

Rou started fidgeting when she didn't immediately open the door. “What took you?” he demanded as soon as it cracked open.

“Rou,” I said, putting my hand on his shoulder. “Calm the heck down.”

The door opened the rest of the way, and Katsumi stood at the door, her arms crossed. “I was on the phone, if you must know.”

Rou took a deep breath. “Sorry. I'm sorry.” He bowed his head. “I...wanted to talk to you.”

“I know. Come in,” she said, stepping away from the door.

We followed her in, taking off our shoes at the entrance. I remember playing here when I was little. He had been the only one of us with an N64, so it was one of our favorite places to play when it was raining. And his mom would teach us how to make different things with origami, until Rou got better than her at it, and took over those lessons.

She led us to her dining room. “Sit down,” she said, and disappeared to the kitchen and came back with cups of apple juice for each of us. She set them down on the table. “Sorry, it's not tea.”

“Thank you,” I said. Rou just frowned. If he was any tighter wound up I was fairly certain he would break.

“So...” she said.

“Do you remember me or not? Because it looks like everyone else remembers me,” Rou demanded, the words falling out of his mouth.

She was quiet for a moment, and then sighed. “I remember things. I remember taking you to the doctors when you were in High school. I remember arguing with you when you came home with pink hair. I remember going to your graduation. I do not remember giving birth to you. I don't remember when you were little. Either I adopted you as a teenager, or I still have memories gaps...” Rou opened his mouth to object, and she raised a hand to stall him, “I am inclined to believe the latter, since all of the other crazy nonsense you've spouted has been true. I believe you. And I'm sorry if I've hurt you. I didn't mean to.”

Whatever Rou expected, it wasn't that. He looked lost for a second, as the anger drained out of him. It took him a while to find his words. “I'm sorry, too. This whole memory stuff has been hard.” He stared sheepishly down at the table.

“It has,” she agreed. They were quiet for a long moment, and I couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt. The Bright Lady's guilt. She wished she could have helped the spirits before they had turned to the blots. I'd fix it. Some how. I wasn't sure how I could. Benten was overwhelmingly stronger than me. But I had to, so I would.

“I'm going to fix everything,” Rou said, and I started, surprised that he had voiced my own thoughts. “I'm going to find the ReMare that took your memories.” He stood up. “Come on, I've got to do it now.”

I stood up, glancing apologetically at Katsumi. “See you later,” I said. She just nodded, and I came to the sudden realization that she had dark bags under her eyes. She was tired. Rou waved at the doorway and hurried off. I had to jog to catch up to him, and by the time I did, he had already mounted his bike and gunned the engine. I had questions, but I kept them inside as we drove. I watched his back, trying to figure out what he was planning.

“What are we going to do?” I asked, when we got back to my apartment. Sharky and Arachne were both in my room. I could hear Arachne telling some sort of story to Sharky.

“I'm going to the Under,” he said, pacing around the table, “And taking out every ReMare I can find.”

“That's the stupidest thing you have ever said,” I said.

He stopped in front of the fridge and looked over at me. “I can't just wait until we find the ReMare. I don't even know how to look for it. I've got to do this. I know the Under. Ki knows the Under. We'll be fine.”

“No... It sounds like you're going by yourself,” I said, hand on my hip.

“Well, yeah,” he said. He brushed his hair back away from his eyes. “I'm the only one that can go.”

“I could go,” I said. Rou stared at me, and his eyes widened slowly, as he realized that I also had a spirit and a human body. A spirit on their own would become a ReMare, and a human on their own would forget everything, even with armor. Together, they were relatively safe.

“And so could I,” Nisei appeared from the other room, “If Togo would go go with me. I know the Under too. There are enough ReMares left that it would be dangerous for you to go by yourself.”

“Not even counting... that guy,” I said.

“I'd run if he showed up,” Rou said begrudgingly. “And if you think Akito is going to let Togo go down there with out him, you're an idiot.”

“Togo can make his own choices,” Nisei said, “And he's been down there before.”

“Do you think he'd agree to it?” I asked.

“He might. I ran into him this morning. We both went to visit that old lady with the pears,” Nisei said. “I didn't know he'd be there. It didn't surprise her to see us both together.”

“She thought you two were brothers when she met Togo,” I said.

“This is a bad idea,” Rou said, pacing again. “I'll need to tune up your drivers, and Meiko and Akito won't like this... I don't like this...”

“And going by yourself is the better plan?” I demanded, grabbing his jacket to stop his pacing. “Let us help you.” I met his gaze, our expressions both deadly serious. After a long moment he nodded.

“Alright. We'll go together. You two, get a hold of Togo. I'll get my computer set up and make sure your drivers will be alright. We'll go tonight.”

And we were shooed out of my own apartment as he got to work. I looked at Nisei. “Do you know where he's at?”

Nisei shrugged.

“What?” I grinned. “Normally you're like,” I shifted my posture to be more stiff and pointed off in a random direction, and mimicked his voice, “there's something over there!”

“I can sense weird energy. Like ReMares. Or that alien. Togo's energy isn't weird at all,” Nisei said, crossing his arms, and looking away.

“I'm just teasing. He got a cell phone,” I said, and pulled out my own to call him.

“Hmph,” Nisei grumbled.

I ignored him a the phone rang.

“Hey?” Togo said, sounding groggy.

“Did I wake you up from a nap?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he said. “What do you want?”

“Rou and I are going on a mission. You might not like it, but we think you could come with us, if you went with Nisei. We could use the numbers,” I said.

Togo was quiet for long enough that I worried my call had dropped. Finally he said. “Maybe. What are you doing?”

“Sneaking into the Under and kicking as much ass as we can,” I said, and I couldn't help but grin. It was stupid. It was dangerous and stupid. But part of me was thrilled with the prospect.

Togo laughed in disbelief. “That doesn't sound like a good idea.”

“I know,” I agreed.

“Akito isn't going?” he asked, suddenly wary.

“No. Only a human and a spirit together are strong enough not to get messed up immediately,” I said.

“Alright. I'll come over,” he said and hung up on me.

“Sounds like he's in,” I said, and Nisei straightened up.

“He did? I can fight?” Nisei asked. I nodded.

Eventually Rou allowed us back in my own apartment. He had an impressive new set up, and was scanning my Time Driver. “I think this will be alright. There's a lot of additional calibrations that I should of done when you fought as Bright on New Year's Day, but I didn't get a chance then.”

“I thought you did adjustments already?” I asked, watching him work.

“There were some factors of your... Soul? Spirit? Whatever... That I didn't account for, because I didn't understand,” Rou said delicately.

“Ah,” I said sagely, as if it made sense. It did, a little I guess. I certainly didn't know what I was then, and had a much better idea of it now. “I see. You understand my soul now.”

“When you say it like that, it sounds stupid,” Rou said, bristling.

The doorbell rang. “Speaking of stupid,” I said, and opened it. “Come on in, Togo.”

Nisei looked alert as he came in. “Stop looking at me like you're going to eat me,” Togo said when he caught Nisei's gaze, halfway through taking off his outdoor shoes.

“I want to fight. I am willing to work together with you for that. And I am willing to leave you to yourself after. That is all,” Nisei said, and bowed deeply to him.

Togo seemed taken aback by that. He put his foot down onto the main area of my apartment, apparently just remembering that he was holding it. “Akkun can't help. So I will.” He stepped up the rest of the way, and nodded his head awkwardly at Nisei, as if uncertain what to do with a bow that low.

“Good,” Rou said, and tossed me my Time Driver. “Give me your driver.”

Togo handed it over and Rou quickly updated it, before passing it back.

“How exactly do we get into the Under?” I asked, glancing at Nisei, and then at Rou.

“I do not know how to do it without being a ReMare,” Nisei said.

“We'll go to the park. I don't want to open it here,” Rou said, and led us out side to the park down the street from my apartment. He started scuffing lines in the sand. In some ways they reminded me of the sigils that the others passed through when they transformed, but the lines were also just wrong enough that they made me uneasy. Rou glanced up from his work. “Nisei, Togo, now is a good time.”

“How do we?” Togo asked, looking awkward. Nisei held out his hand, and Togo took it. Nisei's human form disappeared and the paper tanuki that had held his light fell to the ground. “Oh. I see. Huh.” He stared at his own hand, and his eyes widened. “My nails!” I glanced over his shoulder to see that they now looked like they were painted in a pattern of blue, yellow, and orange.

Rou laughed. “Yeah, that happens.” He pointed at his own hair. “This isn't dyed.”

“Huh,” Togo said, flexing his fingers. “I guess it's not that weird.”

“Whatever. Are you ready?” Rou said. He had a black piece of origami paper in his hand, that had further sigils written on it in white gel pen.

“Should we transform first? Go in guns blazing, as it were?” I asked, making finger guns at him.

“Not guns blazing. It'd be better to take them down quietly as we can so we don't end up overwhelmed,” Rou said. “But do transform.”

I nodded and thought about my Memokas. Stealthy. My first thought was Sakura, but I'd rather not time out that fast. 1111 was another quick one, but it played music with every beat, so it was way too noisy. Obon wouldn't be bad, and neither would Rain. They were both flexible and fairly easy to run in. I decided to go with Rain. I raised up my Time Driver, and said “Henshin!” and then swiped the Memoka across it, before putting it to my waist. It chimed, and pale blue light fell around me, as my armor appeared.

At the same time Togo and Rou both raised up their Drivers and said “Henshin!” before putting them to their waists and stamping them. They both stepped through their sigils and into their armor.

“Let's go,” Spring said, and dropped the black paper into the middle of the dirt sigil. It sank into the ground as if suddenly liquid, and then spread to fill the area that he had traced out.

“That's it?” I said, feeling a sudden sense of trepidation that was decidedly rainbow flavored. Not that I entirely disagreed with the Bright Lady. This was still stupid.

“If you don't want to go, you don't have to,” Spring said.

“No. I'm going with you,” I said.

“Alright. Then... Grab my hands. I don't know if it will throw us in a random place in the Under, and I don't want to get separated,” Spring said, and held out a hand for me, and a hand for Summer. We both took a hand. I squeezed it tight once, and he squeezed it back. “Let's go.”

On the count of three, we all jumped into the ink pit.

Everything went dark. It was viscous and dark, and it reminded me of when I had gotten stuck in the weird turtle otter abomination's leg. A thousand small, disjointed memories assaulted me, none of them whole enough to make any sense. The line of someone's chin. The sound of laughter. A fraction of a teacher's lecture. The feeling of being kicked in the butt. A sunburn. The taste of strawberries. And the taste of soap. It was like someone was changing the TV channel too fast, but with everything. And behind everything, there was a lurking presence, like the weird colored ooze a computer screen has when you smash it. It was apathetic, and under the gaze of that apathy, I felt intense danger. I screamed, and I struggled, desperate to get out, desperate to get free, but something held tight to my hand, dragging me down. I was going to die.

Not something. Someone. Spring is there. The rainbow voice reminded me.

Right. Right. I took a deep breath and allowed myself to keep falling.

Suddenly we broke through the ink and landed on soft... ground. Ink? It was sticky and wet, but it held firm. I looked at Spring, who let go of my hand and was already standing up. “No,” I said as firmly as possible.

“No?” Spring asked, tilting his head.

“Just no,” I stood up, shaking my head.

“Did it scramble your brain?” Summer asked, amused.

I thought about it for a moment. “Yes.” And then gathered more words to myself. It was a bit like catching a fish with a paper net for a moment, and then I felt more coherent. “You didn't see them?”

“I couldn't see anything,” Summer said, “It was pitch black.”

Spring just looked at me, and shook his head.

“I guess...I see memories sometimes, when I touch people. Or ReMares.”

“Interesting. There might be some lingering memories in the ink that makes up the Under. Since Blots pass through it all the time,” Spring said.

Summer growled, and then shook his head, as if startled. “Nisei says we should move,” he said afterwards.

“I thought I fixed that,” Spring muttered, but Summer just yelled at him again. “Shut up, idiot. We're trying to be sneaky.”

“Arguing won't help either,” I said. “Where do we go?”

“Follow me,” Spring said, and darted down one of the inky halls. He left behind glowing pink footprints, although the glow quickly faded. I glanced behind me, and saw that my foot prints were pale blue, fading to bright white in the middle. Summer's footprints looked like little sunrises, with blue at the heel, fading to orange and then yellow.

We passed rooms and corridors, which Spring glanced down, but didn't take. It was silent, aside from our boots squishing into the soft ground. It reminded me of the horror house we had went in during Halloween and I squeaked at the thought and grabbed a corner of Spring's bow.

He looked over his shoulder at me. “You okay?”

I nodded. “Reminds me of the haunted house thing,” I said quietly.

“What?” Togo said, and then “Oh.”

“I am informed that the haunted house was inspired by the Under, and that someone is sorry,” Spring said loftily, and I knew he meant Ki.

“It's okay,” I said, although I didn't let go of his ribbon. “Where are all the ReMares?” I asked. Actually getting to fight would take my mind off the creepiness of this place. Not being able to do anything was the worst.

Spring stopped walking. “I'm not sure. I would have sworn we would have ran into some by now. They're usually all over the place. Nisei?”

Summer snarled, and then sighed. “He says he's having a hard time sensing anything.”

“Hm. Well. Let's look a little bit longer,” Spring said, and started moving again.

He led us to a room that actually looked a little familiar, and I realized I had seen it in his memories. Four thrones lined the room, facing each other, and at the end of the room, was another throne. The four thrones were no longer draped with colored fabric. And the pile of fabric at the base of the final throne had gotten bigger, heaped up around it, like a college kid had forgotten to do laundry for a very long time.

Spring stared. “That... doesn't look good.”

“Is it really okay to be here?” I said in a hushed voice. If this was the High ReMares' room, I didn't want to catch the attention of a certain snake.

Spring shook his head. “I am going to look around, and then come back. I'm just going to look, and I'm going to go fast. I'll be back in a minute.”

“Do not fight anything by yourself,” I said sternly.

He nodded, and clasped my hand. “I swear.” He stamped his belt a second time and became Spring Fever, and then a blur.

“I thought we were going to get to fight,” Summer complained.

“I thought so too,” I said, feeling uneasy.

“Where are all the ReMares? I know you didn't beat all of them. Nisei remembers a ton more,” Summer demanded.

I shrugged. “I don't know. Some of them might be on the surface, I guess.”

“Not all of them,” Summer said.

And then Spring Fever was back, sliding on the slick ink. “They're gone. I don't know why, but I'm guessing it isn't good. We need to get out of here.” He hastily started drawing another sigil in the ground, leaving thick grooves in the inky floor. They glowed faintly pink as he started connecting them.

He threw a white piece of paper in the middle, and the lights flared, and then faded. Spring stared at it. “It's not strong enough. Why isn't it strong enough? Did I do something wrong?” He scuffed out the sigil and tried again, more carefully this time.

“You mean it didn't work?” I asked, starting to panic again. If none of the ReMares were here, than they must be on the surface. And if there were as many as Rou and Nisei said, then people on the other side were in danger. Meiko and Akito were in danger. And they didn't know where we were, because we were idiots. They'd be worried.

“It didn't,” Spring Fever said. He dropped another piece of white paper in the center and it flared again, but did nothing.

“What are we going to do?” Summer said, starting to pace. “We can't be stuck down here, can we?”

“I don't know!” Spring Fever snapped at him, trying again. “It's worked a ton of times before!”

I held out a hand to stop him. “Let me try,” I said, and swiped the Bright Memoka across my driver.

“Shine Bright! Go!” My belt chimed, as rainbow light swirled around me, and my Bright armor appeared.

The ground underneath me hardened and shattered, like a mud puddle on a hot day. The cracks were full of incandescent light.

And then the ground heaved upwards. I lost my balance and pitched forward, my Prism Wings kicking in and keeping me in the air, as the ground abruptly dropped underneath us. Summer howled, managing to keep his feet until the ground threw Spring Fever at him.

I dipped down and grabbed both of them, pulling them into the air with effort.

“What the heck?” Spring Fever demanded.

“I don't know! I didn't think it would do that!” I said, floating to the side as one of the walls heaved towards us. “I don't think I can fly like this for long,” I said, shifting my grip on Summer, who was slipping. That I had any control of the wings at all was an improvement. In the past they had worked like a parachute, only activating to slow my falls.

“Go up!” Spring Fever said, activating his blades on his feet and kicking the wall as it got too close. It sizzled and a bright pink scar appeared across it, and shrunk back like a dog that had just stuck it's nose in something unpleasant.

“Right,” I said, and pushed up to the ceiling. As soon my wings touched it, the ink cracked and fell apart, opening up a path. Suddenly, in the throne room beneath us, a thousand glowing eyes opened, and stared at us.

Summer yelled and flailed, and I tried to hold tighter to him.

“Stop it! You're going to drag us all down!” I shouted, still trying to push upwards.

“It's looking at us!” he shouted back.

It was doing more than that. Thin tendrils of ink rose up from the floor. Then fell. Then rose again, higher this time, like it wasn't sure how to do it. They fell again, and then rose up. One wrapped around Summer's leg and he screamed. And I echoed that, “Togo! Nisei!” I shouted, as he was pulled from my grasp. My hand felt horribly, wretchedly empty. He was falling, down towards the heaving mass of eyes and ink.

And then he wasn't. If Spring Fever was anything, he was super fast. He managed to kick the tendril grabbing Summer's leg, and get a good grip of his hand. “I got them! Keep going!”

I nodded, and struggled for a moment with the odd balance shift, before surging upwards to avoid another heaving ink tendril. The ink above me kept shattering as I touched it, until light, real honest sunlight, shone through the cracks. Just a little farther. Just a little farther. I gritted my teeth inside my helmet, and broke through the last thin layer of ink, and into the beautiful day light of the real world. As soon as Summer was out, the hole in the ground sealed over, and my wings disappeared, collapsing us into a big heap on the ground.

 


	46. Under

The ground rumbled underneath us, and I tried to untangle myself from the others. I managed to get to my feet, and helped them up. "What, exactly, was all of that?" I said, still trying to catch my breath.

"I don't know," Spring Fever dismissed his armor, and Summer and I followed suit. "I've never seen it do anything like that."

"The Under is the blots," Nisei said, hopping back into his origami body and returning to his human form. "But I didn't think the whole thing could act. Just bits of it that had memories or spirits stuck in them."

"The whole thing did have memories stuck in it," I said, shuddering at the thought of all of those disjointed scenes. The ground rumbled again. "We need to get to Aki and Meiko. They need to know what's going on."

"Do we gotta?" Togo said, and he was answered by a more violent shake.

"I think we do," Rou said dryly, already on his phone, texting them to meet us back at my apartment.

They were both there in the parking lot when we arrived. "What's going on?" Akito demanded.

"We might have woken up the Under?" I said, grinning guiltily.

"What?" Meiko asked, horrified.

"We went down there to see if we could take out a bunch of ReMares at once," Rou said, crossing his arms over his chest. "But there weren't any ReMares there. So we left, but a bunch of eyes and tentacles chased us out."

"It was gross," Togo commented, and Akito shot him a look.

"Wait. You're telling me that the three of you went into the Under, with my brother, and you did not tell me?" Akito demanded.

"I've been down there for three years, Akkun," Togo reminded him.

"I was with him, he was fine," Nisei said.

"You could have at least invited us to go with you!" Akito objected.

"You couldn't. You don't have a spirit living in your head," I said. Akito did not look like he believed me. "More importantly, we need to figure out what to do next. The ground hasn't stopped shaking..."

As if to make a lie of my words, the ground did stop trembling. And then there was another shake, and a huge pillar of ink burst from the ground in the distance like a geyser. Two more burst after it, and then they flopped to the ground, merging together into a huge, formless pile.

"Shit. Shit. Shit." Rou repeated. The ink twitched to life again and rose up, like a huge slug with arms. Cracks in it shimmered with light.

"Looks like we have our to do list," Meiko said faintly.

"It's huge," Togo whispered in awe. "It's got to be kilometers away but it's still huge. How are we supposed to fight the entire Under?"

Nisei held out his hand. "Together."

Togo looked at him, and his expression grew serious, to match Nisei's, and he took Nisei's hand, and Nisei joined him again.

"Wait a second!" Akito objected, "You're not-"

"This is my town too. We'll fight." Togo and Nisei both said, their voices echoing each other.

"Come on, big brother," I said, slinging my arm over Akito's shoulders. "At this point everyone is in danger whether we like it or not. Let's kick it's ass together."

"Big brother?" Akito said, surprised. "Aren't you older than me?" I smirked at him, and dawning amusement appeared on his face. He had called me kiddo so many times, despite being several months younger than me, that it surprised him when I finally retaliated. "Alright, I get it. I'm not going to stop anyone from fighting."

The ink monster grabbed onto a building and the color faded from it. "We need to get going now," Meiko said. I nodded and let go of Akito.

We each grabbed our bikes and started driving towards the massive monster. Every instinct in me told me that we were going the wrong way. That we shouldn't be going towards it. And other people certainly were heeding that feeling. We had to weave through traffic that was fleeing the center of the city, and plenty of people were running away on foot on the sidewalks.

A massive pile of ink dripped from the one of the Under's long inky arms, splattering in front of us. We skidded to a halt. "This is it," I said, and raised up my Time Driver. "Henshin!" I shouted, and crossed it with my Bright Memoka again.

It played a wild guitar riff, and chimed "Shine Bright! Go!" Light swirled around me, and my bright armor appeared again.

Meiko and Rou stood to one side of me, and Akito and Togo and Nisei to the other. "Henshin!" They shouted together, and stamped their belts, twice. There was a cacophony of sound as each of their belts played their power up music, and announced their forms.

"Fall out! It's Harvest time! Go! DEEP FALL!"

"Winter HOWL! LONG NIGHT!"

"SPRING FEVER! SPRING UP AND GROW!"

"MIDSUMMER! BLAZING GLORY!"

Two sigils passed over each of them, and they shifted to a battle stance.

The pile of ink in front of us stirred, and rose up, becoming a massive blot. It was barely humanoid. It advanced on us.

Spring Fever flung himself forward, and attacked it. Pink scars appeared in it's sides, but it still oozed it's way forward. Spring Fever had to back away to keep the massive Blot from just steamrolling over him.

"Keep going!" he said, "I'll catch up!"

"RAGGGH!" Midsummer roared, and took him up on the offer without thinking. He ran forward, towards the Under's main body.

"Tch!" Deep Fall starting to run after his brother, but hesitating near Spring Fever. "Be careful, idiot!"

"Shut up!" Spring Fever said, and delivered a kick to the back of the hulking blot.

"Love you too!" Deep Fall blew him a kiss before running after Midsummer.

"Long Night. Can you help me?" I asked, looking up at the head of the Under monster.

She followed my gaze, and then looked back at me. "Do you want me to throw you up there?" she asked, summoning her sword.

"No. Come with me," I said, and my Prism Wings appeared on my back, casting glowing reflections of light against the dark, shiny ink. I held out my hand to her.

She nodded and took my hand. "Let's go."

I held her tight against me, and pushed off against the ground. It was a lot easier to fly above ground.

I trailed sparkling lights as we flew up and up.

"Why me? I'm not fast... I don't have a bunch of tricks up my sleeves," she said quietly. I glanced down at her, in surprise. "I guess strength might be more important against this guy, but..."

"Because I want to be with you?" I said, interrupting her. "I love you. I don't want to fight alone."

"But what about..."

"The others? I love them too, of course. But you are my best friend." I bumped my helmet gently against the top of hers. "Always have been. You've always been so strong and cool."

"Are you sure you're not talking about yourself?" She laughed a little, but it didn't sound quite as self deprecating as the other times.

"Only cause I had to try so hard to impress you," I said, amused.

"It's the other way around!" she said.

"Well then, let's do our best for each other, okay?" I said, and dropped down on top of the ink blot's back. The ink crackled under my feet.

"Right." She nodded, her helmet dipping into her poncho's cowl , making it look shy and adorable, instead of annoyed and cool. She drew her sword again, and dragged it against the ink.

I drew my Memoka from the Time Driver, and it announced "Prism Sword! Go! Go! Go!" as it became a shimmering blade of light. I knelt down, driving it into the thing's back with as much force as I could. The ink around me rippled and shuddered, like a horse trying to dislodge a fly that was biting it's neck. I didn't remove it, and the ink rippled harder, and suddenly the watchful glowing eyes were back.

"Ahhh!" Long Night, recoiled, stepping on one and causing it to blink out.

I launched myself forward, dragging my sword that was deeply embedded in the ink with me, creating a deep shimmering gash.

The Under screeched, and a thousand tendrils shot up out of the inky body, reaching towards the gray sky, before falling back down, heavily around us. "Oops," I said, hopping back into the air to avoid one of them falling on me.

Long Night grunted in agreement, and sliced the base of one, and it rained down as useless ink instead. The tendrils absorbed back into the body, and the Under shot them back up again, this time at human height, and they became blots instead, their feet unformed trunks of ink that rose up from the Under. It didn't seem to hinder their motion any, as they circled us to attack. I stepped back on the back of the beast, and it crackled underneath me again. I stood back to back with Long Night.

The blots moved closer, as if wading through water. "Three, two, one," I said softly, and at one, we both took a step towards them, slashing them with our swords. The blots that we hit dissolved into inert ink, but more sprung up from the body, pressing closer. One took a swing at me, and I ducked under the punch, reversing my blade, and slamming it into the thing's back.

Long Night lifted her blade as a shield, blocking a swarm of them pressing closer. It looked like a dam struggling to hold back a swollen river. "There's too many!" she shouted.

"Just a sec!" I said, and with my wings, I hopped above her, and drove a kick into the massive gang of blots that were pushing against her sword. They shattered at my touch, and we had a little breathing room for a moment, but it was not long before there were more. And the ground dipped beneath us, and the Under groaned and staggered to the side. I grabbed Long Night, desperate to not let her fall.

And speaking of fall, a portal opened up in front of us, and Deep Fall and Spring Fever hopped through.

"What happened?" I asked, landing again, now that the Under had seemed to stabilize.

"We got a good hit on one of it's legs," Deep Fall said, giving us a thumbs up. "And then Summer decided to climb the damn thing when he realized you were up here."

"Midsummer yelled at us when we offered him an easier way up," Spring Fever said, slightly amused.

"No time to talk, guys," Long Night reminded us, as more blots appeared, bigger blots, ones that looked like ReMares we had fought appeared around us. "We've got lots of company." She rushed forward to attack one that looked like an all black Anubis.

"Right!" Deep Fall said, and spun his sword in one hand, before jumping and implanting it into the chest of a cat shaped blot.

"Ahead of you," Spring Fever said, halfway across the Under's broad head, a trail of sinking blots riddled with pink holes behind him.

I grinned into my mask, and joined them. I spun around, slashing a blot in the face, and then flipping out of the way of another blot's attack, inadvertently kicking another in the head as I landed. More appeared in their place, and I struck at them too.

Spring Fever started to get cornered, and was running out of space to run, when Long Night ran to him, bulldozing them with her massive sword. "Thanks!" he shouted, hopping onto her blade and out of the thick of it. She spun and made a massive gap.

"Not a problem!" she called back.

We kept fighting. "This is going to go on forever like this," Deep Fall said, starting to breath hard. I think all of us were starting to feel the energy drain. The blots went down easily enough but there was always more to fill their place. They just kept coming and coming. It was like trying to empty an ocean with a spoon.

"RAAAAGGH!" Midsummer yelled, as they came clambering up the Under's spine. They tackled a blot that was looming unseen behind Deep Fall, and tore it apart.

Deep Fall spun in surprise, and sighed in relief when he saw who it was. "Dang, you surprised me. Didn't think you'd get up here so fast," he said.

"Shut UP!" Midsummer yelled, and I was not entirely sure if it was Togo or Nisei, or both together.

"Fair enough!" Deep Fall agreed, and thrust his sword into another blot.

"Prism Charge, Complete!" My belt announced. I felt confused for a moment, and then reinserted my blade into the docking spot. It flashed rainbow lights around it, and I pulled it back out. "Prism Gatling! Go!" it announced, and the Memoka became the Gatling gun again, with all of my Memokas becoming the chambers.

"Watch out," I said, and aimed it down. Bolts of rainbow light burst out of it, hailing down into the Under. It shuddered and a deep ravine started to form in the ink. The beast started heaving again, rippling as it tried to fill the hole, but it couldn't keep up. The Gatling shots severed the Under's head, and there was a huge splash of inert ink as it fell to the ground below. The remaining ink started to slide down. I landed, and switched the Gatling back for the sword, and the five of us dug in and surfed our way down off of the beast as it fell into a considerably smaller pile of ink on the streets.

We stepped off of it, taking a few steps away before looking back at it. The ink was quivering slightly in a pile.

"Did we beat it?" Spring Fever asked, watching it suspiciously, his fists raised in front of him.

As if to answer, part of the pile thrust itself up into the air, reforming a long neck and head shape, and the rest of the pile rippled, as it raised up from the ground.

"Guess not," I said, moving my sword in front of me.

It roared at us, head extending towards us, jaws open and teeth dripping with ink. Five more heads and long necks erupted from the ink beast, rotating around the first one.

I leaped forward to attack, using my wings for extra lift. Long Night charged, her sword raised. Spring Fever was already ahead of me, distracting one of the other heads with a blade in it's throat as he ducked under it. Deep Fall summoned a portal and sent head careening through it, and then back out at one of the others. They smashed together like a toddler slamming together two different colors of clay together. It became muddled and confused, but it didn't actually hurt the beast. Midsummer roared back at the Under monster, and jump kicked one of the heads.

One by one, each of the heads fell.

Two by two, they regrew.

“It's a hydra!” Long Night said. “It'll keep splitting it's heads if we continue like this.”

If I hadn't already seen the monster throw fresh ink over the scars of light that Bright left on it, I would have suggested that I cauterize each neck as they cut them off. But I didn't think that was going to work. “It's got to run out of ink eventually. Keep attacking them!” I suggested.

“Got it, boss!” Deep Fall said, raising his sword in the air as if directing a charge. He started hacking at the necks.

Midsummer got thrown back by one of the heads, and he snarled as he climbed back to his feet. He finally drew his nunchaku, and spun them around, using them to smack heads out of the way violently.

Long Night sighed and blocked a head from crashing into Spring Fever with her sword, and handily twisted it around and ran it through.

Spring Fever returned the favor quickly by kicking aside the two heads that replaced it before they could charge her.

I darted around, flying between the necks and hitting them with my sword when they got close. Some of the heads followed me, weaving under and over other necks, until they couldn't move because they were tangled. One of the tangled heads snarled at the other, biting at it, before they seemed to realize that they were all the same gooey consistency and simply merged together and separated themselves. It was like trying to tangle pudding. It just wasn't going to work.

“Ahh!” Deep Fall yelled as one of the heads wrapped around him, pulling him away from the ground. I kicked off another neck, changing directions quickly, flying to his side. I sliced the neck below where it had wrapped him, and the ink fell away, dropping him to the ground. “Thanks, love!”

I started to help him up, when I heard Long Knight yelling. One of the bigger heads had gotten her wedged in between it's front teeth. She was pushing up on the roof of its mouth, but it was quickly collapsing around her. Spring Fever was trying to get to her, but a hundred smaller heads were chasing after him.

“Gotta go,” I said, and dashed back towards her.

“Abracadabra!” Deep Fall shouted, and a portal appeared in front of me, and dumped me right in front of Long Night.

I made a note to kiss his brilliant stupid face for that beautiful trick, and cut the head at the corner of it's mouth, slicing through it's jaw as if it were made of warm butter.

Or pudding.

I was starting to get tired and hungry. Sue me.

“Are you alright?” I asked, hovering above Long Night.

“I'm fi-”

Midsummer came crashing through the air, hitting me and dropping both of us to the ground. My wings flickered and sparked out, and I pushed them off of me. “Ow,” I said, more annoyed than actually hurt.

They jumped to their feet and held a hand out for me. I took it and pulled myself up.

“Threw me. Sorry,” they said, and I got a sense that they were actually working together, because it sounded like both of them were in charge.

We were starting to be forced to gather in one small area. We were tired and beat up, and the heads had made a tangled nest around us. The more we struggled the deeper we were trapped.

“Well, that worked splendidly,” Deep Fall said, his sword tip dragging on the ground as he rested for a brief second. “Got any other bright ideas?”

I was torn between the impulse to laugh, and the impulse to punch him in the side. “Don't insult me with puns, you jerk!” I said instead, wishing I could stick my tongue out at him. “That's not fair!”

“If you've got another charge on the Prism Gatling, I'd suggest using it now,” Spring Fever said. He still had his fists raised, but he was looked like a stiff breeze would knock him down.

“I can try,” I said, and replaces the Prism Sword back in the Time Driver, and then drew it again. I pressed the button, and the sword blade burst out of the end again. I sighed. “Sorry. I can't even get my wings to work anymore.”

“We have to keep trying,” Long Night said, desperation starting to color her voice.

Summer nodded, and spun their nunchaku, hitting a head that dared stray too close to us.

It seemed to be a sign that whatever brief reprieve we had been granted was over, because then a hundred heads came rushing at us, each one with dripping fangs and glowing white eyes.

We fought. Because we had to. But we were growing tired, and slow, and the ink was everywhere. We were wading through it, and it slowed us down even further.

We were going to lose.

We were going to die.

The thought beat in my chest like butterfly wings, and the light around me flared. I would not allow it. I wanted to live.

I wanted everyone to live.

But I was sinking into the ink, and it was growing darker, and darker.

I saw my friends struggling, but I couldn't reach them.

This was the end.

BOOM.

The Under monster shuddered and splashed.

BOOM.

The heads all fell limp to the ground, and we were back in the city. I got to one knee, breathing hard. I didn't know what had happened, but I was glad to be alive. A much smaller ink pile still shivered in the street, but it seemed to not be interested in attacking for a moment. I saw the others, face down on the ground, and my heart started racing again. I ran over to them. “Guys!” I shouted.

Long Night stirred, pushing herself up with one hand. “You're alive,” she said, soft and happy.

“Somehow,” I admitted.

“Ugh,” Deep Fall groaned. “I don't wanna get up,” he complained, like a petulant school child. After a moment, he did anyway. He pulled Spring Fever up too, who came up limply. My heart was in my throat again, until he stirred and started supporting himself.

“What happened?” he asked groggily.

“Not good. Not good. Not good,” Midsummer repeated, crawling back away from the remaining ink pile, until they was on their knees, and then on their feet.

A figure rose up from the ink.

It was shiny and black, but with shimmering undercurrents of other colors, like an oil slick. It looked like our armor. It had a shiny black cape that dripped ink slowly from it's dagged ends. And it's helmet had shimmering, glowing eyes, the colors swirling slowly like mine, but... They were slit down the center, like a snake's eyes.

“Benten,” I whispered in horror.

He raised his head, and his attention was suddenly on us. “Entropy, actually. Not that it matters.” He thrust his fist down into the ink, and pulled it up, his hand dripping with shiny ink. He put it up to where his mouth would be and lights flickered across his helmet to shape a mouth, and the ink all disappeared. So did the light mouth. “I suppose I should thank you for putting this thing through it's paces. It's much easier to eat now.” The toothy grin reappeared, and the disappeared, and he strolled towards us. “I should have eaten those fools a long time ago... Did you know most of them truly didn't want to destroy everything? All they wanted was to disrupt things a little, to cause little pockets of chaos. It was small sighted. But I allowed it, you know.”

I lurched back to my feet, putting myself between my friends and him.

“Do you know why, Bright?” he asked. I could feel waves of power rolling off him. It was decay, disorder, the end of things, the end of time, the end of memory. And all I wanted to do was run.

I didn't, and he answered his own question. “Because it was entertaining. And I am inevitable. The end is inescapable.” He made fists with his hands and then flexed his fingers open, and light crackled around his hands like electricity. He looked at them, and then up at me.

“I thought you wanted to save them,” I said, taking a step forward, although every fiber in my being screamed to get away from him. “Benten, you wanted to help them. We can still do that.”

“Did you not hear me when I said the end is inevitable? This place will be forgotten. It will disappear. Humans will disappear! And so will you!” His voice got steadily louder, and his power pulsed out.

I braced myself, struggling to stay standing, and the light around me flickered.

“Agh!” Long Night yelled, and there was a bunch of noise as their belts powered down to their base forms. I gritted my teeth. This was not good. I was barely holding on to my Bright form. My friends were being pressed down by Entropy's crushing aura.

“I won't let you,” I growled, forcing myself to take one step, then another. And then I was running. At him, somehow, sword raised, voice raised in a wild battle cry.

He thrust his palm out, energy crackling around it, and hit me square in the chest.

For a moment, it felt like everything stopped. My heart. Time. Everything.

And then I was thrown backwards, bouncing once against the cement before coming to rest on the ground.

“You are so selfish. Everything ends. You are not special, butterfly,” Entropy said softly.

I laughed. And it hurt. I grabbed my ribs, and groaned, before slowly pushing myself back up to my feet. “You're right. I am selfish. This town is mine. These people are mine. This life is mine. These spirits are mine. The Bright Lady is mine. The Mei Brigade is mine!” Each word was light, and I felt myself grow stronger, wings beating determinedly in my heart. I flung my hand aside to gesture at everything to emphasize my point.“And maybe the end is inevitable. Maybe someday, no one will remember Oara. No one will remember what happened here.” I stared at him, and the glow around me intensified, and my wings returned. “But. I am selfish. And I have the power to protect what is mine. And I will not let them go with out a fight! The end can wait a little longer, because I WILL PROTECT THIS TOWNS' PRECIOUS MEMORIES!” I thrust the Memoka back into my Time Driver, and withdrew it again, this time drawing the Prism Gatling. I aimed it at him, and fired.

Light gathered in front of the gun's barrels, like water pooling, gathering power, until it burst forth like a torrent, swirling in the air, and crashing into Entropy. He held up his hands, and for a moment, he absorbed it. Then he started sliding back from the force of the light. Entropy yelled, and shoved the beam aside, diverting into a nearby building, which briefly regained it's original color before quickly fading back to black and white.

He was breathing hard, and like an angry dog. I raised my Gatling gun again, and he straightened his posture, suddenly composed again. “It seems I am missing something.”

Boom.

Hot white light shattered the air like lightening in front of me. I raised an arm, trying to block the intensity of it.

And Entropy was behind me.

My friends were behind me. I spun around, and he had picked up both Spring and Summer by their necks. “You two have been hiding, haven't you?” he said. He threw them both back, and their armor scattered in faint light.

In his hands he had a globe of blue, yellow, and orange light, and a globe of pink light.

“No! Ki! Nisei!” I shouted, and I jumped to kick his back, my belt announcing “Vanishing Point!,” as light gathered around my boot.

My foot made contact to the shiny cape, and then somehow... he was facing me, my foot in his hand. The spirits were gone. The light around my foot flickered and went out, and he swung me around, flinging me into a grayed out car. It crumpled behind me, and then suddenly it wasn't there anymore. And then it was. And then it wasn't.

The heavy atmosphere lightened. Entropy too, was gone.

 

 


	47. Pitch

The scenery was... wrong. It wasn't just gray with the sense of wrongness. It was wrong. Entire buildings glitched in and out of existence, sometimes halfway built. Sometimes entirely different, older buildings appeared. Cars and people too. It was like a video game had glitched so badly that the universe was desperately throwing out assets from it's memory that didn't make sense.

It didn't matter. “Rou! Togo! Are you alright?” I ran over to them, clipping my hip through a mailbox that suddenly appeared before me.

Akito wiped his transformation clear, and crawled over to Togo, to feel for his pulse. “He's alive,” he said, and sighed, and glanced over to Meiko, who had also cleared her transformation, and was hugging her knees. I knelt next to Rou, and he opened one eye and nodded slightly. Akito pulled Togo up to a seated position, and his brother made a disgruntled face. Akito looked at me. “Somehow we're alive.”

“This is my fault,” Rou said softly.

“Shh, no it's not,” I said.

“He got my notes. That stupid alien stole them and gave them to that...” Rou said, struggling to sit up, “that snake!” And suddenly there were faint gray snakes everywhere as the surroundings glitched.

“Ah!” Meiko yelled, and they disappeared, to be replaced with downed trees.

I went to her, putting an arm around her. “It'll be okay. I can beat him.”

“He threw you at a car so hard it broke reality,” Akito said, raising an eyebrow at me.

“He ripped Ki and Nisei out of us... He could do the same to you,” Rou said.

“I'm sorry... it sounds like you think she's going to lose?” Meiko said it like a threat. She sounded so calm, but I could feel her shaking. I kissed the top of her head.

“Oh no. Absolutely not,” Akito said, pretending to be afraid of the threat. “Just letting her know what she's facing, in case, you know, she forgot?”

“I didn't forget,” I said softly. “I won't let him take you from me.”

“Yeah, yeah. You said some cool things. Don't let it get to your head, got it? You're not the only one fighting,” Akito said.

I looked at them. Rou was clutching his side, his shirt bloodied and torn near the chest. He was breathing hard. He couldn't fight as Spring Fever without Ki. Especially not in the state he was in. And Togo too, was still unconscious. Meiko and Akito might be able to transform again. But that would mean abandoning Rou and Togo. “Right. Let's see if we can find some place safe to rest for a little while.” I cleared my transformation, and Meiko and I went to help Rou stand up. The world glitched around us again. “Not sure where that will be, though,” I said grimly.

“Not in Oara, that's for sure,” Rou said, leaning heavily on me and Meiko.

Meiko shook her head. “I think... I'm scared that if we leave, we won't remember it to come back.”

“We are probably the only ones who still have memory in this city... we're probably the only ones who are keeping it from disappearing all together,” I said, taking a step backward in alarm as a huge wild boar appeared in front of me and then disappeared.

“Home,” Akito said, firmly. “Let's go home.”

“I'm not sure the way home even-” Rou started, but then all of our homes appeared around us. Momiji Cafe and Rou's lab were sidled up next to Meiko and my apartment building. Meiko's parents' apartment was stacked awkwardly above it. Nisei's apartment building was on the other side of ours, and Rou's mother's house was behind us. Between Katsumi's house and the cafe was Honatsu's house. They ringed us, creating a pocket of safety. They were still gray and colorless, but they were there. “Oh.” Rou stopped, looking around at all of the buildings. “That's... useful.”

“If our memories are the only thing keeping Oara real, then we just got to make them behave,” Akito said, a smug smile stretching across his face. “I'm going to check on my mom,” he said, scooping up his brother in his arms.

“Wait!” I said, but they were already through the door.

“Let's check on Sharky and Arachne,” Rou said, and Meiko nodded, helping him over to my apartment.

I reached out to them as they pulled away from me. “Don't-”

They were gone. It felt wrong.

I thought about running then. I could find Benten and bring him down. They would be fine, after.

But I couldn't make myself abandon them. I wanted to make sure they were together. I wanted to make sure they were safe.

And I was tired. A moment to rest, then. And then... I took a deep breath, and went to the Meiaki house. I knocked once, but no one answered. I tried the door knob, and the door gave way as if it were paper. Well. That was weird. I stepped inside. Everything was gray. But... I stopped in front of the kitchen. There was a small pocket of color there. The kitchen had orange tiles, and silver appliances. The cabinets were painted blue, and splotches of sunlight dappled the floor.

Akito and Togo were there, but they were small. Akito had to be no more than ten, and his brother looked like he was five or six. Six, if I had to guess. A yellow first grader's bucket hat was hung on a small hook over a shiny new indigo ransel backpack. They both had little aprons on. Akito's was orange, and embroidered with maple leaves, and Togo's was baby blue, with a smiling yellow sun patch ironed on the chest. They were cute.

They were helping Honatsu in the kitchen. Akito was kneading dough, yelling out attack names from some hero show as he punched the dough, and then folded it over. Honatsu was standing with her arms wrapped around Togo, carefully teaching him how to cut carrots.

“Remember, Togo-kun, make sure you use a kitty paw to hold it steady,” she said, demonstrating by holding the carrot down with her fingers tucked inwards so that they were out of the way of the knife. “Can you do it?”

“I can do it!” he said, and she gave him the knife.

“Final kick!” Akito said, giving the dough a karate chop, and then throwing it in a bowl and covering it with a thin towel.

Togo looked over alarmed. “You didn't kick it, did you? Gross! Mooom!”

“He didn't kick it,” she said, amused and tolerant, “Don't get distracted, Togo-kun.”

“Aki! Togo! It's me!” I called. I didn't expect them to recognize me.

I did not expect them to ignore me.

I did not expect for the scene to suddenly go dark. Honatsu disappeared. The boys were both their normal ages, the ones I had seen walk into the house. Togo was slumped, leaning hard on a chair, but he was up and awake.

Senator Meiaki was there, in an all black suit.

Something about the way he... jittered? As he stood there... Something about the way that his eyes glinted white... My heart filled with dread.

“Get away!” I shouted.

They didn't hear me. I ran forward, desperate to shake Akito, to grab both of them, to drag them out of here.

I ran and ran, and didn't get anywhere. It was like running in a dream.

“What did you do?” Akito demanded. “Why? You had a wife that loves you! You had power! You had whatever you wanted. How could you?”

Senator Meiaki smiled and tilted his head.

“He's not there anymore, Akito,” Togo said, gritting his teeth.

“Your little brother is smarter than you,” Meiaki said.

Akito took a deep breath. “I know. It's not like I would have gotten the answers from him either. Wouldn't have even asked him. But it feels good to yell. Now. Are we going to do this or not?” He raised up his driver and brought it down to his waist. “Henshin!” He stamped the driver twice, and two sigils passed over him.

“Fall out! It's Harvest Time! Deep Fall!” His belt announced, and he drew his sword. He put himself, between Meiaki and Togo.

Meiaki shook his head. “Do you think you'll be able to stay in that form this time?” he asked, and raised up a black driver, before drawing it across his waist. “Henshin,” he said, and stamped it.

“Devour, destroy, Entropy,” the belt growled low and quiet, with no music behind it. Black ink exploded out of him, and then was pulled back in, covering Meiaki in black armor. Bright white eyes appeared on the helmet, and a heavy aura enveloped the room.

Togo hissed in pain and sunk to the floor, the color running out of his face.

“No!” I shouted, and I struggled to get closer. I couldn't. In fact, the dark aura seemed to push me back even farther.

“You know, I think I might even give you an answer,” Entropy said, flexing each finger in one hand individually, rolling lighting along them like he was trailing his fingers through ribbons. “All he wanted was to control us.” He paused when he saw Deep Fall clenching his fist. “Oh yes! He wanted to control everything. Including memories, including the events of this town. It's hilarious that he doesn't even have control of his own body. Isn't that funny?”

“No,” Deep Fall said. “It's sad.”

“Sad? You were ungrateful. And selfish. How often have you said not all Meiaki are related? After he worked so hard to give you the best life. And now you say it's sad?” Entropy asked.

“Not the best life for me. Not the best life for Togo,” Deep Fall said, shaking his head as if shedding the words like water off a rain coat. “But yes. You turned his greatest fear against him. I hate him, yeah, for not dealing with that fear better, but I feel sorry for him, stuck with a great slime like you.”

Entropy was suddenly in his face, grabbing him by the shoulder cape. Deep Fall swung at him with his free hand, and Entropy grabbed that arm, pinning the sword in the air. “Don't be stupid. You are him. Your cells, your DNA. That is how living things work. It's silly, isn't it? Living things are so desperate for immortality, that you make little copies of yourself, and then they turn out disappointing and unruly. It's why you'll eventually destroy yourself. It's why you deserve to end.”

“Take that back,” Deep Fall growled.

“What? Did it upset you that you are your father?” Entropy laughed. “Idiot.”

Deep Fall raised a knee into Entropy's chest, and kicked hard, tearing himself away. He crashed into the fridge, and pushed himself to his feet. “If I am him, then I am Honatsu too. I am all of my unruly choices. And most importantly, I am Akito. It's an improvement, you goop,” Deep Fall said, making a rude gesture at Entropy.

“Hm.” Entropy tilted his head, as if bored. “Unconvincing.”

“Lucky for you, I don't give a shit,” Deep Fall said, and ran at Entropy, his sword raised. He slashed him across the chest, and raised his sword again to cross the glowing wound, but Entropy raised his hand and grabbed the sword. Lightening ran down it, and through Deep Fall.

He hissed in pain, and forced his hand to unclench, dropping the sword. He staggered back, his armor glitching back to Fall. “Dammit,” he muttered, and summoned his glaives instead. “This is stupid. I'm going to die alone, huh? Well.” Fall charged at Entropy again.

“I'm here!” I shouted, but I fell a million miles away, as Entropy knocked aside one of the glaives, stole the other, and thrust it back at Fall.

Akito fell.

“No! No, no no no!” I said, running to him.

Except the house was gone. I was back in the clearing, with all of our homes. Except the Meiaki residence was gone. Momiji Cafe was gone. Nisei's apartment was gone.

I wanted to cry. I wanted to scream at the heavens. Akito. Togo. It wasn't fair.

Instead, I made myself move. My body felt like clay. My apartment. Meiko and Rou were there. They had to still be there. If I could save them... I threw open my front door.

And found myself at Dai San High School, in our homeroom. Meiko sat at her desk near the window, Rou was sitting on top of the desk in front of her, looking down at her book. The tree outside the window was green, and the sky was a brilliant spray pink and gold and purples as the sun was setting. Meiko and Rou were both in their blue winter uniforms. Rou's shirt had had a high collar, and Meiko's sailor suit uniform had a loosely tied red ribbon.

“I don't get why you go to broadcasting club, Meiko,” Rou complained. “It runs so late. And you don't even like talking that much.”

“You could have went home earlier, Rou,” Meiko said, leaning back in her chair.

“I know. But I wanted your opinion on this,” Rou said, tapping the notebook, which was filled with design sketches.

“Then don't complain. And you know exactly why,” Meiko said, turning the page.

“Cause you've got goo goo eyes at a certain club president,” Rou said, sounding tired, like he had heard that exact answer a thousand times. But his lips quirked a small smile, like he was teasing her. I had been that certain club president. Had she really had a crush on me for that long?

She blushed, and kicked the chair that he was resting his feet on. “You should join, Rou. You can just work on the equipment, if you want.”

“Nah, if I stay in the Go Home club, I can work on my bike.” Rou said, shaking his head.

“I like this one,” Meiko said, holding up the notebook and showing him one of his designs.

He grinned. “I thought you might.”

I tried to push my way closer, but I was stuck at the doorway again. “Not again, no...” I got out my driver. I had to warn them, had to be with them. “Please, please, please! Henshin!” I said, and swiped the year Memoka across the driver.

“This is your Year! Let's go, Let's go! Yeah!” My belt chimed, playing lively guitar music. My white armor appeared, and I tried to get closer.

“Meiko! Rou!” I shouted.

Rou glanced up, looking in my direction. “Did you hear that?”

“Hm? No?” she said, glancing up to see what he was looking at.

They were both looking at me like I wasn't there. “Be careful!” I shouted, praying that they would hear me.

Rou shook his head slowly, “I guess I was imagining it...”

“Or it was a ghost,” Meiko said blandly. “The school is haunted, after all.”

“It is not!” Rou objected.

“Suit yourself,” Meiko said, unconcerned.

“AGH!” I shouted, and drew my Prism Blade, and slashed wildly at the air around me, angry that I couldn't get any closer to them. “I'M HERE! YOU ARE IN DANGER!” I shouted, and dug my sword into the ground, and pulled it out slamming it into a desk, and then into the wall. “LET ME GO!” I shouted.

The scene fell apart, and we were in my apartment.

Although it barely looked like my apartment, with all of the color missing, from my magpie nest. Entropy leaned against the kitchen counter, and Meiko had an arm wrapped around Rou, who was baring his teeth at the dark rider.

"Give me Ki back!" he snarled.

"You'll join him soon enough," Entropy said, hopping to his feet. "Of course, it won't be a particularly touching reunion. Dead things do not, as a rule, chat. Or they shouldn't. Your friends may have skewed your perspective on that." he took a step forward, and the heavy, dark aura rolled off him.

Rou doubled over in pain.

Meiko grabbed his driver out of his jacket pocket and slammed it on his waist. She stamped it twice for him and then dove out of the way as the sigils passed over him. She rolled back up to her knees, grabbing her own driver and putting it to her waist.

"Too slow, girl," Entropy said, grabbing her wrist as she raised it to stamp her driver. "Should have saved yourself first."

"Fuck you," she said with a dangerous grin, and used his grip to throw him over her shoulder.

He landed neatly, but a pink and purple blur crashed into him. Meiko straightened up, and glanced at her wrist. It was starting to turn gray. She clenched her fist and stamped her driver twice.

One sigil appeared, and passed over her. The second sparked, but failed.

"Tch," she said, and turned to advance on Entropy. Her armor sparked, and parts of it disappeared, before reappearing again. She ignored it, and she launched herself at him, raising her sword. She hit him across the back, and Entropy grunted.

"Meiko, no... It's... I can't!" I said trying to run to intercept the blow I knew was coming. My apartment stretched, and I just... couldn't reach her.

He grabbed Spring Fever by the arm, halting his speed. He spun and chucked Spring Fever at Winter. He crashed into her, and they fell into the table, which disappeared under them.

"No!" I shouted again, and Winter's armor fizzled and disappeared, her skin gray.

Spring Fever got to his knees, supporting his balance with one hand. "She's definitely not going to let you win now, idiot," Spring Fever said, sounding like he was laughing a little. It was not a happy sound. "In fact, you're in for a world of hurt. Gonna wish you never became whatever weird twisted monster you are."

Entropy straightened up, looking down at him with disdain. "You say that like there was ever any chance of her winning. I assure you, there is not, was not, and never will be a chance. I will destroy her last. She was my friend once, after all. Aren't I kind?"

"You're a piece of shit," Spring Fever said, and stood up slowly, "And you're wrong. She promised. She said she could beat you. I believe in her. We all do."

"There is no we. There is just you. Ki is gone. Meiko is gone. You are alone." Entropy corrected him, like he was explaining something to a particularly stupid child.

"Sure," Spring Fever. said, sounding amused, and pushed off the ground, leaping to tackle Entropy. Slow. Too slow. Entropy simply stepped- no. A purple web flared up underneath him, halting his step. Entropy looked down, puzzled. Sharky zoomed up at his face, biting at his helmet.

"BAD! BAD! BAD!" she scolded him, punctuating each word with another snap of her teeth.

"Agh!" he yelled, and knocked Sharky aside. She hit the wall, and crumpled, the sky blue color leaking out of her paper until it was gray

Spring Fever hit him next, punching him over and over with his wrist knives. He spun and kicked him in the side, and Entropy staggered to the side.

Entropy yelled, and flung lighting around the room. One hit Arachne, who was hiding on top of the fridge. She cried out, and the purple web underneath Entropy flickered out. Arachne's purple color faded till she was limp gray paper.

Entropy glanced up to where she had been, and then looked back at Spring Fever, a flash of light spreading across his helmet in a vicious grin. "Clever. But not good enough."

Spring Fever stared at him, grabbing at his own side again. "I can still fight," he said, and it sounded like he was trying to reassure himself. "And... If you do get past me, at least she'll know I did something cool."

"Rou, you idiot!" I shouted at him, my voice shaking.

Entropy had enough. His hands sparked with lightning, and he reached out and grabbed Spring Fever's helmet. Spring Fever screamed at his touch, and then Entropy casually pushed him aside. He collapsed on the ground, and his armor flickered back to Spring. Entropy put a heavy boot on his chest, and Spring gasped and that armor also disappeared. Rou clutched at Entropy's boot, and the color started fading from him. "Kick his ass for me, Meiki," he said, struggling to breathe.

I nodded, not able to speak through the emotions knotting up my throat. He had known I was there. I couldn't reach him, but he knew.

I took a deep breath, and everything went dark. My apartment was gone. The other houses were gone.

There was nothing. It was gone.

I took another deep breath.

Not everything, the rainbow voice said in my thoughts.

Faint, tiny lights appeared, leading away from where I was.

Wherever that even was. I put one foot in front of the other, following the tiny lights. They bobbed and flickered like fireflies, although as I got closer to them, they looked like tiny little butterflies.

In the distance I saw the shrine. It fairly glowed in the darkness. It was like a distant fire in a blizzard, or an oasis in a desert. A safe port in a storm. As I got closer, it sustained me in the same way. I could feel the glow all the way into my bones.

Home, the rainbow voice said, relieved and tired. And sad. So very sad. I wished I could hug her. She continued, her thoughts shimmering in my mind. I was born here when humans stopped to grieve for their comrades. It is suitable that the circle closes the same way.

I touched the temple alter, tracing the stone with my fingers. Her words sounded final, and a shiver ran through me. "Will it hurt?" I asked out loud.

I don't know. Her colors flared in my thoughts. But. We will get them back. We won't let them be forgotten.

"Right," I said. I turned away from the temple. "Benten. Come here. You want an ending, I'll give you one." I drew the Bright Memoka across my time driver.

"Shine Bright! Go! Go! Go!" My belt chimed. I couldn't be certain, but it sounded like the transformation music sounded more determined. I felt more determined. The rainbow light swirled around me, and I stepped out, my armor shifting colors subtly in the light.

Entropy was there, at the end of the path, gray dullness following him, clinging to him like he was walking out of a smoky room.

I drew my Prism sword, and tightened my grip around the hilt.

"So, butterfly. Here we are. You are alone. All of the things you were fighting for are gone. Your friends. The city. Everything you've ever done. Everything you've ever seen, or loved. It's gone. And you are next," Entropy said, and pointed a finger at me, light crackling around his hand.

I looked down, taking a deep breath. Gathering myself. I looked up slowly at him. "You're wrong. They are here." I pointed at my chest. "And I made a promise."

"Prism Wings, go!" my belt chimed, and my glowing butterfly wings erupted from my back. I jumped into the air, light streaking behind me like an after exposure of a camera taking pictures of cars racing through the night.

Entropy was also rushing toward me, his hand raised and sparking. I swerved to the side, swiping his arm away from my face with the Prism Sword. His other hand came up to grab me from the other side, and I jumped straight up into the air, evading him entirely. I reversed and dove down foot first, aiming for his head.

He was too quick that time. He grabbed my ankle, and flung me down to the ground. The impact knocked the air out of me. He raised a foot to step on me, like he had Rou, and I forced myself to roll out of the way. I got myself to my feet somehow and darted at him, flicking at him with my sword, trying to test his defenses. Move. Move. Faster.

And then his hand was in my face, and I was flying backwards. I crashed into a stone lantern. I grit my teeth and pushed off of it, slashing at his arm.

He wasn't even there anymore. He was above me somehow, and he dropped on me with his elbow extended. We both crashed to the ground, and I was pinned. I struggled, and I could feel my territory weaken, the edges of color fading from the temple grounds.

"You are wasting energy. And when it is gone, the results will be the same as if you didn't try. It's stupid," Entropy hissed in my ear.

I struggled anyway. I flared my light, and it burned him. I could hear his armor sizzle. I rolled out of the way, and back to my feet, my stance wide, one hand down to catch me if I lost my balance. He wasn't entirely wrong. Energy was at a premium right now. I couldn't let this fight drag out forever, because he would win. I had to beat him. And I had to do it now.

Now, the rainbow voice echoed.

Before she could tell me what to do, he was in front of me, and it was all I could do to just block his attacks. He knew. He knew and was slowly, painfully, wasting my energy, wearing me down. He spun and kicked me in the head, and I went flying again.

The bright lady took over. She... I landed on my feet.

My heart was beating so fast, I could feel it in my fingertips. And just as I thought I would burst, she appeared in front of me. A beautiful bright white butterfly slowly beat her wings as she blocked me from Entropy.

She didn't have a human face, but her voice was smiling when she spoke. "Meiki. Thank you." And she wrapped her wings around me, her form shifting to the beautiful lady that I had shown myself in the woods, when I had officially became Year back in high school. When I had fought the red cheeked bear ReMare. She held me in her arms, and then disappeared, her light glittering around me, enveloping me in starlight.

"Aeon. Glow." My belt announced to triumphant orchestral music.

My armor changed.

It was pure white again, like Year, but it still had the three tiered skirt. The cape was gone, but the butterfly light wings were still there, now pure white instead of shimmering rainbow.

The trim on my armor resembled the lines on a butterfly's wings, except that they glowed, and shifted colors. First red, then blue, then purple, cycling through all of the colors of the Memokas. I couldn't see it, but instead of the swirling compound eyes of my other suits, my helmet had two overlapping butterfly wings across the front of it. The spaces between the color changing lines were each a different colored glass, and were where I could see out.

I lowered my hands down to my sides as I watched Entropy. He was having a hard time looking at me. I was radiant. And he was afraid. I hadn't realized it before. It didn't mean I could allow his actions. A warm blanket of calm had lowered over me. "Benten. I know it scared you.”

"What nonsense are you talking about now? Do not think that another transformation will be enough, butterfly!" he hissed, and the edge of darkness crept in, swallowing the temple and the forest around it. It swirled around him, and his hands sparked with light. "I am still in control here."

I shook my head slowly, taking a step closer to him. "You gave up that control, as soon as you threw your hand in with destruction." The darkness was tangling with the sparks around his hands, and they went out like embers. He looked around wildly, as if realizing a mistake. I took another step closer, parting the darkness like a blade. "You were so scared of being devoured, of being destroyed, that you trashed everything so that you might be spared. But it's not going to spare you, Benten."

Entropy looked at his own hands, a small glowing line streaking across his helmet, making him look sad and scared. He looked up at me and hissed, raising his hands as claws, running at me.

I didn't move out of the way. I let him come. He tried to rake his claws across my chest. I grabbed his wrist, and expertly twisted it down so that he couldn't attack. He tried to punch me with the other hand, and I did the same to that one, so I was staring him in the face. "Benten. Enough."

He struggled violently, and his wrists sizzled and glowed where I was touching him.

I let him go, and he nearly fell down. He caught himself and scrambled to regain his balance. "Why? Why are you so strong? How?"

The Bright lady answered in unison with me, our hearts one. Our voices rang with rainbows, sending shock waves through the darkness. "I am remembered. And I protect the memories of the city I love. The people I love. They are with me. And I am with them. That includes you, Benten."

"You will be forgotten! Those people will die! You will die! The city will be reclaimed to the wild, and humans will be no more! And then what? What will you do then?" he flung crackling light at me, and I knocked it aside. I was much brighter than his feeble embers of light.

But I didn't have much time left.

The darkness was growing around him, stealing the flickering lights of his eyes.

"I will be satisfied," I said softly, "That I did my best." I gathered all of my power. Oara. The bright lady. Meiko. Rou. Akito. Nisei. Togo. Sharky. Arachne. All of the spirits, and all of the humans. All of the rainy Sundays sitting and listening to music. All of the sunny days, playing in the park. All of the laughter. All of the tears. And yes, even all of those long boring times where nothing seemed to happen.

That light gathered up in my hand, slowly solidifying into a massive lance. And I charged.

He stood there, unmoving, but the darkness around him shot out, deadly points of nothing. I dodged them, flying to the side or up to avoid each one.

And I struck Entropy in the heart with the lance. I kept running, and the darkness too, was impaled on the light.

Entropy's armor disintegrated.

Senator Meiaki fell to the ground.

A white globe of light rose out of him.

"I will show you, Benten," I said. And slashed away the rest of the darkness.

It fled.

And everything went white.

For a moment, I was unsure where I was. Who I was. Then I remembered being here before. I looked around for the pools of light that had led me out before.

There.

I reached for them. And then they were there. Not just Meiko, Akito, Rou and Nisei. But All of them. The whole city. All of the people. All of the Spirits. Good. I smiled at them. They were there. As they should be.

But. Someone was missing. I panicked and spun around, desperately reaching for the rainbow voice. For the Bright Lady.

I almost didn't see her.

She was weak, fluttering, tattered on the floor. I knelt next to her.

"I am satisfied," she said softly.

"And you will continue," I said, picking her up and cupping her in my hands. "Don't go."

"It has been wonderful... seeing the world through your eyes. Thank you for everything. Keep an eye on Benten, if you can. He will need help. And...I hope... I hope I was able to atone for what I've done. I couldn't find a way for us to separate without... But we did it, didn't we? We saved them..." her light dimmed, and her wings fell flat against my palms.

"Wait! No!" I said. "Look after him yourself! Don't... Don't give up now!"

She didn't respond.

I took a deep breath and held her to my heart. I let the breath go, and rainbow light shimmered around me. It enveloped her, and she twitched slightly, and then again, her white wings taking on a shimmering hue. Her wings fluttered again, and then she was in the air.

"I am... alive?" she said in wonderment. “What did you do?”

“You are remembered,” I said, smiling at her. I stood up, the city at my back, the bright lady fluttering in front of me. “Let's go home.” I turned towards the city.

And then I lying flat on my back on the ground at the temple. Small sparks of light were raining down, over the whole city. And I laughed. It was beautiful.

“Good job.” A pink fox was sitting on top of a lantern. It shifted to the form that was more familiar to me, which was borrowing Rou's appearance, a pink kimono and a fox mask worn jauntily on the side of his head.

All of the other spirits appeared behind them. A silver crane swooped down and landed nearby. “I am grateful to you for rescuing me.”

“I can forgive you,” Shika said, although she turned away and disappeared into the forest quickly.

“You weren't entirely useless,” Arachne grumbled.

“Thanks,” I said, wryly. I set out all of my colored Memokas. “And thank you too,” I said.

Balls of light rose up out of them, and each of them became the animal that they were before. A pink rabbit, Moon, a gold turtle and otter, separated now. Asuka, the yellow bird. The pale blue chameleon Natasha. The brown bull Minotaur. The elegant orange Mantis. The indigo moth Mothren. A small blue cat with tiger stripes. Maneki. The orange monkey Goku. Theo the silver owl. Mu and Kade, red and green centipedes. Hathi the purple elephant.

“I knew you could do it,” Maneki purred, stepping forward to speak for the others. “Thank you.”

“If you need us again, just ask,” Minotaur said.

“I guess you've earned a few,” Asuka said, flying to land on his horns.

“The others are waiting,” A blue, yellow, and orange tanuki said, sitting at the base of the lantern. He shifted too, and became the Nisei that I knew.

A pale blue streak of light rushed up to my face, snapping at my braid and trying to pull me up. "COME ON! LETS GO!"

"I'm up, I'm up!" I said, and stood up. For a moment I stared down over my city. "Let's go."

As I left, I glanced back at the temple. A small white butterfly and a white snake were watching from the temple alter. I waved, and turned back to the town.

They were waiting for me.

 

 


	48. Dawn

"Good morning, Oara! We're your hosts, Kimura Mei..." That peppy voice is me. I'm a radio host in the best city in the world. You know what we're famous for? Me! Well, and some of my friends too. We're Kamen Riders, and we protected this town's precious memories a couple months ago.

"And Koda Mei! Welcome to FM 98.4 Mei Brigade!" That adorable chipper voice is my girlfriend. Most people call her Meiko. She's so cool and cute! I can't stand it! She's the best. And she's not the only one in the Mei Brigade. "With us today, we have our intern, Meian Nisei!"

"Sorry for the intrusion! I'll do my best!" We're still trying to get him to remember that he doesn't have to be so stiff and loud on the air. Nisei wasn't actually human. He was a spirit born from the memories of humans.

"It's the first day of April, and we're live at the former Meiaki Togo Memorial hospital, for the opening ceremony!" I said, my heart bursting with happiness. "We're here with Doctor Meiaki Akito, and his brother, Meiaki Togo, himself. Say hi, guys!" I said, switching the mics over to them.

"Hi, I'm Togo!" A young man who looked identical to Nisei said confidently into the microphone. He had died a couple years ago, but because Nisei had borrowed his body, he had eventually been able to come back to life after we defeated the ReMare that stole his memories.

"Good afternoon, feel free to call me Aki, Meiki-chan," Akito said, teasing. He is also one of my significant others. And he is a big dumb nerd. He's pretty good too, I guess.

"A doctor can't just say that, Akkun!" Togo scolded.

"What, we're friends! Everyone already knows that," Aki said, rolling his eyes at Togo.

"We know you've both put a lot of work into rebuilding this hospital, so we're happy to have you here with us on this momentous occasion," Meiko said, politely. She was amused by Akito's flirting.

"Well, you know. We have to protect Oara's precious memories," Akito winked at me as he said that, and I grinned like an idiot at him. He continued, "Whether or not the cause is medical or monster, we wanted to make sure Oara is well protected. Which is why we wanted to make this facility the number one hospital in Japan, if not the world!"

"I'm so proud of you," I said, beaming at him.

"What made you change the name?" Nisei demanded, reading off a list of questions we gave him if he needed ideas for how to contribute to the show.

"Cause I'm not dead, duh," Togo said.

"I know that!" Nisei bristled.

"Boys, boys, boys. It's fine. Yes, that was part of it," Akito said, patronizingly soothing. Both of them shot him identical glares.

"Are you going to announce the new name, now?" I asked.

"I can do that! Drum roll, please!" Akito said, and Meiko actually obliged him by playing a sound clip of a drum roll. “It's the Shodai Temple Hospital."

"Why that?" I asked, already knowing the answer, and feeling a bit embarrassed by it.

"It's actually to honor the very first place people came when they discovered this area," Akito explained, "And it's also the birth place of Year and the butterfly spirit, The Bright Lady."

I blushed. I had argued to keep it as the Meiaki Togo Hospital, but I had been outnumbered.

As for the spirits, well. Everybody knew about them now. They had seen ReMares, and they remembered them now. And when all of the spirits had been broken free from Entropy, they had made their way to their old haunts. Some of them refused to go back into hiding, like Nisei.

And Ki, who was nudging Rou over at the Momiji Cafe festival stand. They were watching over it while Togo was here. After Akito started getting busy with the hospital, he left the cafe to Togo, who had first given it a massive makeover, although he kept the name. And then went about making it even more popular than it had ever been under Akito's ownership. Akito was a little cross about it, but he sometimes still threw his hat in the ring to help out when he wasn't busy.

Sharky too, had readopted her human form. She was waiting patiently for us to finish being on air. She had a sign board and was going to shout at passerbys to come eat there. I could see a few other spirits in the audience, in their animals forms, watching our show.

"I think it's nice to honor her," Meiko said, touching my arm gently. "Isn't it?"

I blushed harder, "Y-yeah, if it wasn't for her, none of us would be here."

"Don't be so modest!" Rou shouted from across the way, grinning mischievously.

"That's right. You saved us too," Nisei said seriously.

And I thought I might explode with love for all of these idiots, so I stammered out a "And now it's time for an Oara Morning Driiiiive! We'll be back after a short block of nonstop music to bring you more of the festivities!"

Meiko switched over to the playlist and laughed. "You're adorable."

"You're all ganging up on me," I said, accusingly.

"Guilty," Akito said happily, with just a hint of a smirk. Meiko punched him in the arm. "Ow! Hey!"

"Can I go to work now? Other festival stands have already got a head start on serving people," Togo complained, and took his headset off.

"Sure, kiddo," Akito said, and ruffled his brother's messy hair before Togo batted his hand away and ran off.

"Excellent work, Mei Brigade," Rou's mom walked over to us, holding a clipboard. She looked more relaxed than I had seen her in a long time. Everything was going right, and it showed. "If you want to take a few minutes to walk around, the Tenjin 48 are going to play on the stage."

Rou made his way over to sling an arm around his mom's shoulders. "I'm surprised they didn't black list you after how many times you invited them for Puffy-kun's introduction."

She shot him an annoyed glare, but there was no bite to it. "I know. It's luck, actually. They were going to turn me down, but it turns out that their dance choreographer is a huge fan of Meiki's.”

"Of me?" I asked, startled. I wasn't even that big of a fan of them. They were cute and fun, but their songs got requested on the radio enough that they also drove me a little crazy.

"So make sure you say hello," Rou said, letting go of Katsumi. I nodded.

"How is my mom doing?" Akito asked, glancing across the crowd to where she was standing with a small group of people following her. She was giving tours of the new facilities.

Katsumi followed his gaze and made a thoughtful face. "I think she's alright. She likes staying busy." Honatsu had been devastated when all of the shady political stuff her husband had done had came to light after the ReMare's memory influence stopped. She had divorced him, and he had been forced to step down from power. It was also part of the reason we had removed the Meiaki name from the hospital, although we didn't talk about that much.

Akito stood up. "I'm going to go help out. Rou?" he asked, raising an eyebrow to invite him along.

"Alright," Rou agreed, grinning. "See you later."

I gave them a lazy salute as they walked off to talk to the public.

"I guess I should talk to this dancer," I said, stretching and putting down my head set. "Do you two want to come with me?" I asked.

Nisei made a face like he'd rather eat garbage. "No. I'll stay here. Their songs are grating."

"I'll go," Meiko said, and looped her arm around mine. "Maybe they need a 49th member."

I lit up. "Do you mean you? You would sing with them?" Meiko has a very beautiful singing voice and they would be lucky to have her.

"No, I was thinking of suggesting Nisei, actually," she said, glancing back at him as we walked away. He bared his teeth at her, and she laughed.

"Now, now, don't bully the intern," I said, "or your co-host! That's not fair! You know I want to hear you sing."

"Later, love," she said as we got closer to the stage. A lot of the younger crowd was gathered around to watch. And forty eight young women and men stood on the stage, all in matching gaudy costumes. The vast majority of them were girls, and eight of them were boys. The girls resembled frilly black tutus with shiny synthetic leather corsets laced with bright pink ribbons. They had tiny top hats. The boys had shorts and vests over pink shirts, with a bunch of gold chains on their belt loops. They were all beautiful.

I thought that they might do well to copy some of Rou's style, and said as much to Meiko.

"You're not far off from the boys' look, love," she said, and I made a face, although she was right. The main difference was that I had long pants, and none of my outfit was black. If anything, my outfit was more colorful and loud.

"Whatever," I grumbled.

"It's handsome," she assured me, patting me on the shoulder.

"Um, excuse me." The voice was timid and boyish. I glanced over. A young man, maybe a little older than most of the boys in the crew, was approaching hesitatingly. He had red hoodie, and loose jeans that were ripped at the knees. His shaggy, short brown hair was held back from his eyes with red bobby pins. "Are you Meiki? And Meiko?" he asked, his tone getting more excited.

"Uh, yeah," I said, catching his enthusiasm. "That's us. Living in color!" I said, letting go of Meiko's arm to do my transformation pose.

"Ah! That's it!" he said, and copied it. "I was hoping to see you do that! I'm a big fan! Could you sign... uh..." He looked around desperately for something for me to sign.

"I've got business cards, if you like," I said, amused, and pulled one out.

"Oh! That would be even better!" he said, and then his face fell a little, and he continued to pat his pockets. "Uh... Do you have a pen?"

"Does she have a pen," Meiko muttered, a fond smile on her face.

"I do," I said, producing both the card and an ordinary ink pen. "What's your name?" I asked, as I signed it with my beautiful writing.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" he said, and pulled out his own business card, and handed it over to me with a deep bow. "I am from the group... I'm Yohisa Kouji. Um. Nice to meet you!”

"Nice to meet you, Yohisa-san," I said, taking his business card, and giving him the signed one. "Although, perhaps I should ask for a signature too? Tenjin 48's dancing is pretty amazing, and I heard you had something to do with it." That was not a lie. As earwormy as their music could be, the dancing was pretty amazing.

Kouji turned brick red, and rubbed the back of his neck. "Haha, well, if you want!"

"She does. She collects signatures from different groups. In fact, if you could get a signature from the whole band, she'd probably be thrilled," Meiko said, smiling pleasantly.

"I can do that!" Kouji said, and raced off. He tripped over a power cord that had been taped down, thankfully, and scrambled up to make sure I hadn't seen. I looked away graciously, and he ran off.

"Not particularly graceful for a dancer," Meiko said, amused.

"He's nervous," I said. "I'm sure he's fine normally."

He didn't come back for a long time, so we went to sit down in the audience. And then we had to go back to our mobile sound studio to make speeches and interview a few people. It wasn't until dark that Meiko and I were able to go explore the food stalls. We went to Momiji Cafe's first.

Togo was busy making fried foods for people, but he glanced up when we approached. "Hey, some nervous kid in a red hoodie was here looking for you. Fell on his face and ran off. I think he was headed for the hospital tour."

"Oh yeah. Yohisa-san was going to give me something," I said. "But more importantly! Food please!"

He served up some big chunks of potato fried in butter. Drowning in butter. "Five hundred yen, please."

"Aw, come ooon," I whined. "We're friends!"

"Right. One thousand yen, please," Togo said, grinning.

"Rude," I said, and gave him the larger amount money anyway.

“It's a business,” he said, and put away the money. “Besides, proceeds go to the hospital anyway. Meiko, do you want anything?”

I had already started scarfing down the hot potatoes. They were delicious, but they burned the roof of my mouth.

"I'm fine, thank you. I'm actually thinking about going and helping Nisei with putting the equipment away. Meiki, are you going to go find that young man?"

I swallowed the bite of potato and fanned my mouth for a second to cool it. "I think so. See you later, okay?" She nodded, and I went over to the hospital. Akito was deep in conversation with some people in suits, although he spared me a nod. I went over to Rou instead. "He's busy," I said.

"He is." Rou looked tired, and had his laptop balanced on his knee and was working on it.

"Whatcha doing?" I asked.

"He's talking about some sort of program to help rehabilitate people with brain injuries. Getting a head start, so he can have something to show these guys," he said, sounding both annoyed and pleased. "Did you want a tour?"

"I've already seen everything. I did a lot of the work," I reminded him. "But I was looking for a guy. Red hoodie. Apparently clumsy? He works with Tenjin 48 and-"

"You wanted his autograph?" Rou said, taking a moment to look up from his computer to grin at me. "Got a new celebrity crush?"

"Shut up," I said pleasantly. "Did you see him?"

"I did. He ran inside. I think he was with the last group Honatsu sent inside. You could probably catch up with them if you hurry."

"Thanks," I said, and ruffled his hair, which was pink again. Ki must have rejoined him so they could work on the program together.

He smiled at me, and I pushed the door open to the hospital lobby.

It was beautiful now. We had worked hard on the renovations, and after people remembered everything about the ReMares there had been a huge outpouring of support and donations.

I followed the hallway down, I could hear Honatsu talking to the group in one of the offices. I poked my head in and smiled and nodded at her, as she continued explaining a huge painting of Mount Shodai that adorned the wall of the office. I glanced around the room. No red hoodie. Hm. I ducked back out of the room and went up stairs. There he was. Kouji was standing next to the nurse's station, talking to himself.

"I don't see it. Are you sure this is the place?" Kouji whispered, looking around nervously. He spotted me and froze, then scrambled back, dropping a heavy piece of metal. "Ah! Sorry!"

I picked it up. It looked like a wolf's face, jaws open.

"Don't! That's mine!" His eyes widened and he reached forward and tore it out of my hands.

I held my hands up. "Sorry. I heard you were looking for me? What are you doing up here by yourself?"

"Oh. Um." He held the wolf to his chest, and looked away. "I got you an autograph, but... I don't have it on me right now. Just... Go away!"

I blinked and took a step back. "Excuse me?"

"Go!" he shouted, his eyebrows furrowed.

"HEY!" Sharky appeared in a flash of light blue light next to me. She was in her human form, with her hair in twin tails, and dressed in a cute blue dress. Kouji yelped and tripped over his own feet and fell on a bench. Sharky looked at me and grinned, a very toothy shark smile. "IS THIS BAD DOG BOTHERING YOU?"

"I'm fine, Sharky," I said.

"D-dog? Bad dog?" Kouji said, looking horrified.

"I'm sorry, she's-" I started.

"YES! BAD DOG! BE NICE TO MEIKI," Sharky said, advancing on him. He shrunk his head into his hoodie.

"I'm sorry!" he got to the ground and made a deep bow on the floor.

"Get up," I said, annoyed. "Sharky, why are you calling him a bad dog?"

"WHAT?" Sharky turned back to me and tilted her head. "HE IS A DOG? RIGHT?" She glanced back at him, and then back at me. "RIGHT?"

"I don't think so. This is Yohisa Kouji. He's with that idol group that was outside," I said.

"OH. SORRY. I AM SHARKY." She shifted her appearance to look more like the shark person she had looked like when she was a ReMare. "HI!"

"Sh-sharky?" Kouji said, and slowly stood up. "Are you a-" he was interrupted by a scream outside.

"Sorry, Kouji. I gotta see what that is," I said, and ran back outside. Sharky followed. On the roof of the hospital, there was a bunch of weird little gremlin things in wizard hats swarming around, dumping stuff off of the roof. That did not look good. They were definitely not ReMares. But I was still going to protect this town. "Henshin!" I said, and slashed my Bright Memoka across my Time Driver.

"Shine Bright! Go!" My driver chimed, and bright light swirled around me. "Prism Wings, Go!" It added, and my wings appeared. I flew up to the roof.

A ton of the weird creatures were swarming the roof. And when they saw me, they all cackled wildly. A bigger one with a mantle and a cape stood in the middle.

"Hey, don't break our hospital," I said, grabbing one of the gremlins by the scruff of the neck and pulling him away from a chair that was discarded on the roof.

"Your hospital is on top of an artifact!" The bigger gremlin said, and then looked alarmed. "You also have an artifact! This is... Hm..." He pulled out a massive scroll and looked over it, the paper rolling across the ground. "It is not one we are looking for. So. Go away."

"Don't think so," Fall said, appearing from a portal behind me with Winter, Summer, and Spring. "You're in trouble."

"More of you? This is... Hmm. Well. I suppose. Get rid of them. We can use their artifacts for something, I guess," he said, and gestured vaguely at us. The gremlins giggled and started advancing on us. I threw the one that I had grabbed at a couple that were advancing on us. Winter summoned her sword, but the light blade just knocked them aside, with out really effecting them. But they didn't like getting hit. Spring was a blur, hitting them and keeping them from throwing any more of their stolen stuff over the window.

"Go get their boss!" Fall said, throwing a gremlin away from Winter. "We'll take care of these guys."

"Right!" I said, and hopped up into the air. I flew at the bigger one.

"Absolutely not!" the boss gremlin said, and gestured at me. My wings sputtered out and I fell to the ground. I landed on one knee, and glared at him. I pulled myself up.

"Magehand!" A voice shouted from the stairwell access to the roof. I glanced over.

"You!" the big gremlin said, taking a big step back.

I looked over to see Kouji. He had a big grin, that looked almost as toothy as Sharky's. "Henshin!" he shouted, and held up the wolf head that he had dropped earlier. He inserted a dog tag into it's mouth, and it bit down.

"Midnight HOWL!" The wolf said, and moonlight shined on Kouji. He leaned forward, his hands in front of him in a claw shape. He raised his head and howled to the sky. And then black and red armor appeared on him. The face plate of the helmet was a stylized wolf face. One ear was part of a white crescent moon, and the rest of the face was black. It jeweled red eyes, and a huge fluffy ruff around his neck. He drew a sword and ran towards us, slashing at gremlins. They did not seem to like his blade, and they screamed and puffed into green gas.

"Ugh! I did not expect this at all! Fine!" Magehand, the bigger gremlin made another gesture and disappeared, leaving behind his minions.

"Dang," Howl said, reaching my side. He glanced at me.

"So Sharky was right, huh?" I said sticking my boot in the face of one of the gremlins.

"What?" he asked, stabbing his sword into the fallen gremlin.

"About being a dog," I said.

He bristled and pointed a finger at me. "I am a wolf, thank you!"

"Sure," I said, dodging a punch. "What's this about some sort of artifact here?"

He was surprisingly graceful now, spinning and kicking and attacking the gremlins. He spun in a circle, getting a large group of them with his sword. "Those guys like to steal magical artifacts. And creatures. And then mess them up. It's my responsibility to stop them." He swept low, and kicked the feet out from under a group of gremlins.

Between the six of us, we made quick work of the gremlins. When the last of them were defeated, we dropped our transformations.

The wolf spat out his dog tag, and Kouji stooped down to pick it up, and put it back around his neck. And then he saw me. "Y-your Meiki!" Kouji said, taking a step back.

"What kind of fan are you?" Meiko asked, amused.

"To be fair, I think only people in the town know. Anyone outside of town still believe whatever we said on the radio," I said. "Yes. Hello. I didn't know you were also a Kamen Rider." I held out my hand to him. "Thanks for your help."

"Kamen Rider?" Kouji asked, reaching forward for my hand. I shook it firmly.

"Yeah. A Kamen Rider protects their city, and the people," I said grinning.

"Huh," he said, and looked at his hand as he took it back. "It's kind of just a job. Since I'm the heir. But that sounds kinda... cool." Kouji grinned.

"If you need any help, let your Senpai know, okay kiddo?" Akito said, coming over and slinging an arm over my shoulder. "Especially if it's inky gross memory monsters. We're pretty good at those."

"S-sure," he said, and bowed his head slightly. "I'll do my best."

"And if you can help us drag this furniture back downstairs, I would would appreciate it," Akito said.

"I can help!" Kouji said.

Suddenly shadows started appearing around the roof. They were all slightly canine.

Kouji straightened up, glancing around nervously.

One by one, the shadows lifted their heads and howled to the moon.

"Friends of yours?" I asked, looking around. They reminded me of Anubis a little.

One of them stepped forward into the light. She had a hairy, wolfish face and ears, big claws, and a sweeping tail, and she was wearing the same frilly black tutu and corset with pink ribbon as the Tenjin 48.

"I might be in trouble," Kouji whispered.

"Might be," the wolf lady agreed. "I thought I said not to go doing that in front of a bunch of people."

"They transformed too!" Kouji whined, gesturing at us. "I didn't transform in front of anybody who wasn't already fighting, promise!"

"Is it a secret, ma'am?" I asked. "Because we can keep a secret."

"Ma'am? Do you think I'm old or something?" she said, snarling at me. “You're like, twice my age, lady.”

"Of course not!" I waved my hands in front of me. "You just seemed like you were in charge, that's all." I said.

This mollified her. "Because I am. Kouji-kun, we should get back to the hotel. We've got another concert tomorrow, and we need our rest."

"Sure, Seina-chan," Kouji said, and waved at us.

"Do not tell anyone what you saw here. Or else!" Seina snarled at us again.

"Oh wait!" Kouji ran over to another one of the shadows, and then came back with a square poster board. In the center of it there was a picture of all of Tenjin 48, and all of their signatures around it. "Here!" he said, and handed it over. "Thank you again!"

One by one the shadows disappeared, and Kouji ran after them, tripping near the roof.

After we cleaned everything up, we retired for the night in Rou's lab above Momiji Cafe for cake.

Rou had put aside his computer to join the cuddle pile on the couch with me, Akito and Meiko. Togo and Nisei were sitting at the big table in the middle of the room. "Another Kamen Rider, huh?" Rou said thoughtfully.

“And the Tenjin 48,” I added, still kind of baffled.

“Nisei thinks the Tenjin 48 are cool now that he knows they're all werewolves,” Togo said, sounding like a kid tattling on a friend.

“Their music is still awful. Why couldn't they embrace the toothy monster thing and become a metal band?” Nisei said defensively.

“Oh hush, they're fine the way they are. If you want a toothy monster, you should flirt with Sharky,” Akito said. Togo snickered and Nisei went red, and kicked him under the table.

"Kouji seemed like a good kid. I wonder if we'll see him again,” I said.

“THE BAD DOG?” Sharky asked, back in her small shark form, swimming around in the air.

“He's not a bad dog,” I said. “He seems like a pretty good dog.”

“I GUESS,” she said begrudgingly.

"He said something about an artifact or something under the hospital," Rou said, "So that weird gremlin thing might try again."

"That Lab Rat guy... Igorug? He said something about M-waves or something being really strong there," Meiko said, taking a dainty bite of cake. "Togo, this is lovely."

"Nah, Nisei made it," Togo waved a hand dismissively. "I just supervised."

"You made it?" Akito said, sounding impressed.

"What? I... Yeah. I liked making Christmas cake with Meiki... so..." Nisei said, fidgeting awkwardly.

"That was pretty fun," I said. "We'll have to do it again this year too."

"Yes," he said, and nodded, like that made it official.

"I want to do lots of things this year," I said. "Together."

"Making memories?" Meiko asked, leaning against my shoulder.

"And living in color." Rou grinned.

"Can't stop the Mei Brigade!" Akito finished, climbing up to stand on the couch and pose dramatically. I laughed and he lost his balance, falling on top of all of us. Meiko raised up her cake to avoid losing it.

“Be careful, idiot,” Rou scolded.

“Bleeeeh” Akito stuck his tongue out at him. “You love me.”

We continued bickering into the night. I loved them, and I was home.

I glanced outside, at the city, lights sparkling from buildings and from spirits wandering in the night. A white butterfly flew past, and I smiled.

 

 


End file.
